Department of Social and Preventive Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Universiti Malaya, Lembah Pantai, WP Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Ministry of Health Malaysia, Presint 3, WP Putrajaya, Malaysia.
JCO Glob Oncol. 2024 Nov;10:e2400129. doi: 10.1200/GO.24.00129. Epub 2024 Nov 7.
Beliefs on causes of cancer, although sometimes aligned with known risk factors, may be influenced by personal experiences, cultural narratives, and misinformation. We investigated the prevalence of beliefs on causes of cancer and their association with cancer risk perception and lifestyle in a multiethnic Asian population.
In total, 2,008 Malaysian adults with no previous cancer were surveyed using a 42-item questionnaire adapted from the Awareness Measure and the Cancer Awareness Measure-Mythical Causes Scale. Partial least squares structural equation modeling was used to evaluate measurement models.
Despite high educational attainment, only about half of the respondents believed that 7 of the 21 listed established risk factors caused cancer. Factors associated with accurate beliefs included higher socioeconomic status (SES) and having family or friends with cancer. However, 14 of the 21 listed mythical/unproven factors were correctly believed as not cancer-causing by the majority. Women and those with lower SES were more likely to hold misconceptions. Beliefs on established risk factors were significantly associated with perceived risk of cancer. Individuals with stronger beliefs in established risk factors were less likely to be associated with healthy behaviors. Conversely, stronger beliefs in mythical or unproven factors were more likely to be associated with healthy lifestyles.
Findings highlight the importance of prioritizing cancer literacy as a key action area in national cancer control plans. The counterintuitive associations between cancer beliefs and lifestyle emphasize the complexity of this relationship, necessitating nuanced approaches to promote cancer literacy and preventive behaviors.
尽管人们对癌症成因的看法有时与已知的风险因素一致，但这些看法可能受到个人经历、文化叙述和错误信息的影响。我们调查了多元亚洲人群中对癌症成因的看法的流行程度及其与癌症风险认知和生活方式的关联。
共有 2008 名马来西亚成年人参与了这项研究，他们没有癌症病史，使用了从 Awareness Measure 和 Cancer Awareness Measure-Mythical Causes Scale 改编而来的 42 项问卷。偏最小二乘法结构方程模型用于评估测量模型。
尽管受教育程度较高，但只有约一半的受访者认为 21 个列出的既定风险因素中的 7 个会导致癌症。与正确信念相关的因素包括较高的社会经济地位（SES）和有癌症患者的家人或朋友。然而，大多数人正确地认为 21 个列出的神话/未经证实的因素不会致癌。女性和 SES 较低的人更容易产生误解。对既定风险因素的信念与对癌症风险的感知显著相关。对既定风险因素有更强信念的个体不太可能与健康行为相关。相反，对神话或未经证实的因素有更强信念的人更有可能采取健康的生活方式。
研究结果强调了将癌症知识作为国家癌症控制计划中的一个关键行动领域的重要性。癌症信念与生活方式之间的这种反直觉关联强调了这种关系的复杂性，需要采取细致入微的方法来促进癌症知识普及和预防行为。
