Breast cancer screening practice and its associated factors among women in Kersa District, Eastern Ethiopia

Abstract

Introduction: breast cancer is one of the most common cancers and cause of death among women globally. Mortality due to breast cancer was
higher in lower (LMICs) and middle-income countries than high income countries (HICs) mostly due to lack of timely detection and treatment. There
was limited evidence related to breast cancer screening practice among women in Eastern Ethiopia. Therefore, the aim of this study was to assess
breast cancer screening practice and its associated factors among women in this area. Methods: a community based descriptive cross-sectional
study design was conducted among 422 randomly selected women in Kersa district, Eastern Ethiopia using systematic sampling. Data were collected
using pretested interviewer administered questionnaire. Logistic regression was used to analyse the association between the dependent and
independent variables. Results: the overall breast cancer screening practice among women was 6.9%. Women with the age of 26 years and above
were 2.3 times more likely to have breast cancer screening practice as compared to women with age of 20-25 years (AOR=2.3; 95% CI: 1.4, 3.7),
and women who had good knowledge on breast cancer risk factors were 3.4 times more likely to had breast cancer screening as compared to their
counterpart (AOR=3.4; 95% CI: 1.3, 9.4). The women who had ever heard about breast cancer screening were 2.8 times more likely to have breast
cancer screening as compared to those who had never heard about breast cancer screening (AOR=2.8; 95% CI: 1.2, 6.5). Conclusion: the overall
breast cancer screening practice was very low among women in the study area. Age and women's knowledge towards breast cancer risk factors and
breast cancer screening information were identified as important factors for breast cancer screening practice.