Knowledge of Screening for Breast Cancer Among Female Secondary School Teachers in Nsukka Local Government Area

Abstract

Breast cancer is a public health problem globally. Good knowledge is a driving force for a positive action. The study was to find out the knowledge of screening for breast cancer among female secondary school teachers in Nsukka Local Government Area of Enugu state, Nigeria. To achieve this purpose, four research objectives with corresponding research questions and three null hypotheses guided the study. The cross-sectional survey research design was adopted for the study. The study population comprised of nine-hundred and ten female secondary school teachers in Nsukka Local Government Area as at the time of the study. Multi-stage sampling procedure was used to select a sample of two hundred and seventy-eight respondents from the study population. Instrument known as Knowledge of Screening for Breast Cancer Questionnaire (KSBCQ) was designed by the researcher as the instrument for data collection. The instrument was validated by five research experts from, University of Nigeria, Nsukka. Split half method was used to determine the reliability of the KSBCQ which yielded .704. Frequencies and percentages were used to answer research questions while chi-square statistical test was used to test the null hypotheses at .05 level of significance. The whole copies (278) distributed were used for analysis. The SPSS version 21 was employed for data analysis. The result of the study indicated that there was high level of knowledge (62.7%) for (BCS), high level of knowledge of BCS based on age (69.8%,66.9% and 67.5%) respectively; educational qualification, (61.3%, 62.7%, 66.6% and 33.3%) respectively; and location (61.8% and 66.2%) respectively, especially for breast self- examination (BSE). The study further showed no significant difference in the knowledge of BCS based on age (χ2 = 7.071, P = .345 > .05), educational qualification (χ2= 17.534, P = .205 > .05) and location (χ2 =2.993, P = .536 > .05. Based on the findings of the study, the researcher recommended, among other things, that seminars and workshops (especially on CBE and Mammography) should be organized by the government (Ministry of Health) for different teachers because they have the opportunity of teaching the younger ones early in life. This hopefully will improve their knowledge and invariably reduce morbidity and mortality from breast cancer.