Suo Rongfei, Pan Qingzhu, Wu Yuzhen, Li Fulan, Wang Rongli, Ye Fenglian, Zhong Huiling
Department of Thyroid & Breast Surgery, Fifth Affiliated Hospital Sun Yat-Sen University.
Psychol Health Med. 2025 May 6:1-13. doi: 10.1080/13548506.2025.2486502.
This study aimed to explore the relationships between breast cancer prevention behavior, attitude, knowledge, and fatalism, and to examine the chain mediating effect of breast cancer-related fatalism (mediating variable 1, M1) and attitude (mediating variable 2, M2) on the relationship between breast cancer-related knowledge (X) and prevention behavior in Chinese women with benign breast tumors.
A cross-sectional design was used in this study, and 201 women with benign breast tumors were evaluated in terms of breast cancer-related fatalism, prevention knowledge, attitude and behavior by using the Multidimensional Fatalism Scale (MFS) and the Knowledge - attitude-behavior Questionnaire for Breast Cancer Prevention. Regression analysis was adopted to test and explain the relationships between breast cancer prevention behavior, attitude, knowledge, and fatalism, and the chain mediating effect of breast cancer-related fatalism (mediating variable 1, M1) and attitude (mediating variable 2, M2) on the relationship between breast cancer-related knowledge (X) and prevention behavior (Y) in women with benign breast tumors.
Knowledge had significant direct predictive effects on fatalism, attitude and behavior ( = -0.24, = 0.002; = 0.30, < 0.001; = 0.14, = 0.019), attitude has a significant direct predictive effect on behavior ( = 0.19, < 0.001). In addition, there were two significant mediating paths: ① knowledge - attitude-behavior ( = 0.06, < 0.05); and ② knowledge - fatalism - attitude-behavior ( = 0.01, < 0.05).
Our findings indicate that helping women with benign breast tumors increase their knowledge, reduce fatalism, and promote positive attitude toward breast cancer prevention is conducive to enhancing their preventive behavior. In addition, improving the knowledge of women with benign breast tumors can also enhance their prevention behavior by affecting their fatalism and attitude.
