ASSESSMENT OF AWARENESS AND PRACTICES REGARDING BREAST CANCER AND ITS SCREENING METHODS AMONGST SCHOOL TEACHERS OF A RURAL DISTRICT IN PAKISTAN

Objectives This survey was aimed to assess the knowledge and practices regarding breast cancer and its screening method among school teachers of district Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, Pakistan Materials and methods This was a cross-sectional survey using 22 items of self-designed, validated, and translated questionnaire distributed amongst 177 public school female teachers distributed in February 2020 in the district of Swabi, Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) province of Pakistan by using a purposive sampling method. Private school teachers and incomplete questionnaire responses were excluded. Baseline information about the age, educational status, marital status, and questionnaire was recorded on a printed proforma and was analyzed using SPSS-23. Results All 177 participants were females with an age range of 22-60 years and a mean age of 36 +-9.37. Qualification of participants ranged from masters to Ph. D, while the number of married teachers was about 2 times that of unmarried. Most of the respondents (95%) were aware of breast cancer due to varied sources like news, media, the internet, books, or via friends and family. Almost half of the respondents had heard about BSE and about 64% were aware of its significance. About 40% were aware that BSE should be started from puberty to age 30. About 70% of participants were perceiving BSE as a good practice to prevent breast cancer. About 60% had heard of mammography and most of them considered it a useful tool to prevent breast cancer. Conclusion Most of the participants of the study had knowledge of breast cancer gained via electronic and print media and 70 % were aware of BSE, while a small number of them were aware of mammography. This indicates that female school teachers, having better educational status, have enough knowledge and practice in breast cancer detection and prevention. Keywords: Breast cancer, Breast Cancer Screening (BSE), Mammography.