Perceptions and knowledge about prostate cancer and attitudes towards prostate cancer screening among male teachers in the Sunyani Municipality, Ghana

Abstract

Introduction: Poor perceptions and attitudes about prostate cancer screening are some reasons for late reporting for PC screening and treatment. Understanding perceptions of PC and how it translates to screening and treatment is important for physicians and public health practitioners as this information clarifies existing knowledge and provides valuable information for the design of public health programmes to reduce the disease burden of PC. Objective: This study examined perceptions and knowledge about PC and attitudes towards screening among male teachers in the Sunyani Municipality. Subjects and methods: This is a cross-sectional study involving 160 teachers aged 45–60 years randomly sampled from primary, junior and senior high schools in the municipality. A structured questionnaire on background characteristics of respondents, perceptions about PC and attitudes towards early screening was used to elicit responses. Preliminary analysis summarised data on socio-demographic characteristics of respondents, perceptions and attitudes about PC screening. The Pearson’s chi square (χ2) and Fisher’s exact tests, and logistic regression analysis were later used to examine the association between socio-demographic variables, knowledge, perceptions and attitudes about PC screening.

African Journal of Urology (2017) 23, 184–191