Evaluation Knowledge,Attitude, and Behaviour for Breast Cancer among Young Women Living in Two Different Habitats of Turkey

Background: Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer among women in Turkey and worldwide,and is ranked as the second-leading cause of death in women after lung cancer. Early diagnosis of breast cancer ispossible, and breast cancer is included in cancer-screening programs in Turkey. The aim of this study was to evaluatethe knowledge, attitude, and behaviour of young women (older than 20 years of age) on breast self-examination andbreast cancer screening methods, and to determine the effect of sociodemographic characteristics. Methods: A totalof 489 patients were included in the study. The mean age of participants was 36.53 ± 11.22 years. 346 (70.8%) of theparticipants were married. The study was a cross-sectional, non-randomized study in public health. The participants inthis study were women over 20 years old, who presented to Arnavutkoy State Hospital General surgery policlinic andSisli Hamidiye Etfal Family Medicine policlinic. Results: The rate and duration of breastfeeding were higher amongparticipants living in rural areas than those living in urban areas (p<0.001) The awareness of breast cancer increased asthe level of education increased (p<0.001). Having a family history of a high incidence of breast cancer significantlyincreased the rate of breast self examination practice by 1.93 fold (p=0.016). Conclusion: Breast Cancer is a diseasethat can be treated 100 % with early diagnosis. Primary care physicians especially works in lower socioeconomicconditions have to tell the importance of early diagnosis of breast cancer, and properly explain breast self examinationand other screening tools.