Karayurt Ozgül, Ozmen Dilek, Cetinkaya Aynur Cakmakçi
Department of Surgical Diseases Nursing, Dokuz Eylul University School of Nursing, Izmir, Turkey.
BMC Public Health. 2008 Oct 17;8:359. doi: 10.1186/1471-2458-8-359.
Young breast cancer patients have a lower rate of survival than old breast cancer patients due to being diagnosed at advanced stages. Breast self-examination makes women more "breast aware", which in turn may lead to an earlier diagnosis of breast cancer. The purpose of this study was to investigate knowledge and practice of breast self-examination and to determine knowledge of risk factors for breast cancer among high school students.
This is a descriptive and cross-sectional study. It was conducted in a high school in Manisa, Turkey. The study sample included 718 female high school students. A socio-demographic characteristics data form, knowledge of breast self examination and risk factors for breast cancer form and breast self examination practice form were used to collect data.
The female high school students had insufficient knowledge about breast self-examination and a low percentage of students reported that they had performed breast self examination monthly. The most common reason for not doing breast self- examination was "not knowing how to perform breast self-examination" (98.5%). Most of the students had little knowledge of the risk factors for breast cancer. The most widely known risk factor by the students was personal history of breast cancer (68.7%). There was a significant relation between breast self-examination practice and age, school grade, knowledge about breast cancer and knowledge about breast self- examination.
There is a need to increase knowledge of adolescent females about the risks of breast cancer and benefits of early detection. In fact, health care professionals can develop effective breast health care programs and help young women to acquire good health habits.
年轻乳腺癌患者因在晚期才被诊断出来，其生存率低于老年乳腺癌患者。乳房自我检查能让女性对乳房更加“了解”，进而可能促使乳腺癌得到更早诊断。本研究的目的是调查高中生对乳房自我检查的知识和实践情况，并确定他们对乳腺癌风险因素的了解程度。
这是一项描述性横断面研究。研究在土耳其马尼萨的一所高中进行。研究样本包括718名女高中生。使用一份社会人口学特征数据表格、一份乳房自我检查及乳腺癌风险因素知识表格和一份乳房自我检查实践表格来收集数据。
女高中生对乳房自我检查的知识掌握不足，且报告每月进行乳房自我检查的学生比例较低。不进行乳房自我检查的最常见原因是“不知道如何进行乳房自我检查”（98.5%）。大多数学生对乳腺癌的风险因素了解甚少。学生们最熟知的风险因素是乳腺癌个人史（68.7%）。乳房自我检查实践与年龄、年级、乳腺癌知识和乳房自我检查知识之间存在显著关联。
有必要增加青少年女性对乳腺癌风险及早期发现益处的了解。事实上，医疗保健专业人员可以制定有效的乳房保健计划，并帮助年轻女性养成良好的健康习惯。
