Gitonga Eliphas, Iseme Rosebella, Mutisya Redempta, Kodhiambo Maurice
Department of Population and Reproductive Health, School of Public Health and Applied Human Sciences, Kenyatta University, Nairobi, Kenya.
, Department of Population Health, Medical College, Aga Khan University, Nairobi, Kenya.
Health Psychol Behav Med. 2022 Oct 21;10(1):1056-1070. doi: 10.1080/21642850.2022.2136184. eCollection 2022.
Data on cervical cancer knowledge, perceptions, screening practices and other relevant health behaviours among women in rural Kenya is limited. Yet understanding this information is a key first step in developing evidence-based interventions aimed at addressing the low uptake of screening services and heavy cervical cancer disease burden within Kenya. Consequently, our study sought to assess cervical cancer knowledge, attitude, and practice amongst women of reproductive age within Kiambu County, known for a high cervical cancer disease burden.
This was an analytical cross-sectional study undertaken in April 2022. Data was collected using interviewer-administered questionnaires from 472 females randomly selected from within the community. Data analysis included descriptive statistics (mean values, standard deviations, and frequencies) and logistic regression, using STATA version 13.
More than 80% of respondents were aware of cervical cancer though only 54% answered at least half of the knowledge questions correctly. Knowledge of HPV was particularly low, likely because 55% of the study sample stated they had never heard of HPV. Though 89% of study participants deemed cervical cancer preventable, more than 60% had an unfavourable attitude towards cervical cancer screening, deeming the process expensive, painful, and embarrassing. In line with the latter observation, only 20% of our sample had ever been screened for cervical cancer and less than half of this group had undergone regular screening. Notably, knowing a place where cervical cancer screening services are provided had the largest increase in odds of being screened (3.94; 95% CI: 1.08-14.37). Fear of tests and outcomes was also noted to be a prime concern amongst our study participants.
A clear message from this study is the need to ensure community members are aware of where to access screening services and strategies are implemented to address prevalent fears and negative perceptions.Abbreviations: CHV: Community Health Volunteers; HPV: Human papillomavirus; HIV/AIDS: Human immunodeficiency virus/Acquired immune deficiency syndrome; LEEP: Loop Electrosurgical Excision Procedure; LMICs: Low- and Middle-Income Countries; NCI: National Cancer Institute; NACOSTI: National Commission for Science, Technology, and Innovation; VIA: Visual inspection with acetic acid; VILLI: Visual inspection with Lugol's iodine; WHO: World Health Organisation.
肯尼亚农村地区女性宫颈癌知识、认知、筛查行为及其他相关健康行为的数据有限。然而，了解这些信息是制定循证干预措施的关键第一步，这些干预措施旨在解决肯尼亚筛查服务利用率低和宫颈癌疾病负担沉重的问题。因此，我们的研究旨在评估基安布县育龄妇女的宫颈癌知识、态度和行为，该县以宫颈癌疾病负担高而闻名。
这是一项于2022年4月进行的分析性横断面研究。使用访谈员管理的问卷从社区中随机抽取的472名女性收集数据。数据分析包括描述性统计（均值、标准差和频率）以及使用STATA 13版本进行的逻辑回归。
超过80%的受访者知晓宫颈癌，但只有54%的人至少正确回答了一半的知识问题。对人乳头瘤病毒（HPV）的了解尤其低，可能是因为55%的研究样本表示他们从未听说过HPV。尽管89%的研究参与者认为宫颈癌是可预防的，但超过60%的人对宫颈癌筛查持不利态度，认为该过程昂贵、痛苦且尴尬。与后一种观察结果一致，我们的样本中只有20%的人曾接受过宫颈癌筛查，且该组中不到一半的人进行过定期筛查。值得注意的是，知道宫颈癌筛查服务提供地点的人接受筛查的几率增加幅度最大（3.94；95%置信区间：1.08 - 14.37）。对检查和结果的恐惧也被指出是我们研究参与者中的一个主要担忧。
这项研究传递的一个明确信息是，需要确保社区成员知晓何处可获得筛查服务，并实施相关策略来解决普遍存在的恐惧和负面认知。
CHV：社区卫生志愿者；HPV：人乳头瘤病毒；HIV/AIDS：人类免疫缺陷病毒/获得性免疫缺陷综合征；LEEP：环形电切术；LMICs：低收入和中等收入国家；NCI：美国国家癌症研究所；NACOSTI：国家科学、技术和创新委员会；VIA：醋酸肉眼观察；VILLI：卢戈氏碘液肉眼观察；WHO：世界卫生组织
