Knowledge and awareness of cervical cancer and human papillomavirus vaccination among female university students

Background: Prevention strategies for reducing cervical cancer incidence rely on informed populations, particularly those most at risk. This study assesses the knowledge and awareness of female university students towards cervical cancer, human papillomavirus (HPV) and its vaccination.Methods: A validated self-administered questionnaire was used in a descriptive cross-sectional study among female university students. The data were analysed with Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 26, and p  0.05 was considered significant.Results: The total participants were 190 with a mean age of 22.6 ± 4.35 years. The majority (90%) were aware of cervical cancer, and 78.9% agreed it is a terminal illness, but fewer participants knew it was associated with infection (63.7%), and that it had effective risk-reducing methods (70.5%). Only 32.6% were aware of the Pap smear test, less than half (43.2%) were aware of the cervical cancer vaccine and only 43.7% knew it was available locally. Although fewer (39.5%) considered themselves susceptible to cervical cancer, many (62.1%) would like a Pap smear test. Overall, 88.9% of the participants possessed adequate knowledge of cervical cancer, 67.9% of the HPV vaccine and only 33.7% of HPV. Ethnicity (p = 0.03), year of study (p = 0.001) and institution (p = 0.002) were all significantly associated with knowledge levels, vaccine awareness and Pap smear test awareness.Conclusion: Participants showed low HPV knowledge and varying awareness levels regarding cervical cancer, HPV and HPV vaccine.Contribution: This study provides insights into female university students’ knowledge and awareness gaps, highlighting the need for targeted interventions.