Knowledge on cervical cancer and screening tests among women at two reference hospitals in Yaounde, Cameroon

Abstract

Cervical cancer is the second cause of women cancer in Cameroon. This study was conducted to assess the knowledge on cervical cancer and screening tests among women at two reference hospitals in Yaoundé, which will contribute to reinforce cervical cancer prevention. A cross-sectional study conducted in two reference hospitals in Yaoundé included 523 sexually active women aged 25-65 years. Each consenting woman filled a self-administered questionnaire and data on socio-demographic characteristics, knowledge on cervical cancer and screening tests collected. Data obtained were analysed using descriptive statistics. A total of 508/523(97.1%) participants had heard of cervical cancer. According to 167/523(31.9%) participants, Human papilloma virus was the causative agent. The media was the main source of information as reported by336/523(64.2%) participants. Also 209/523(40.0%) participants had previously been screened and in 135/523(25.8%) cases, the lack of information was the main barriers for screening. We found 490/523(93.7%) participants with poor a knowledge of the disease. Poor knowledge on cervical cancer was observed in this study. Educational programmes and media information should be used to improve women’s knowledge and awareness of the disease for a successful cervical cancer screening and prevention. 

Keywords: Cervical cancer, awareness, screening tests, barriers, knowledge score.