Knowledge of breast cancer, willingness and barriers to mammography screening among rural women in Enugu State, Nigeria.

BACKGROUND: Breast cancer is a serious public health threat. Mammography is the most reliable screening method that detects breast cancer early, enabling early onset of treatment which improves the prognosis of the disease.

OBJECTIVES: To determine women's knowledge of breast cancer, as well as barriers and willingness of women to participate in mammography screening.

METHODS: Using the cross-sectional survey design, we sampled and studied two rural communities of Enugu State, Nigeria. Two researcher-made questionnaires were used for the study. Frequencies, percentages, chi-square and regression analysis were employed in data analysis.

RESULTS: Only 11.4 percent of study participants had good knowledge of breast cancer. There were significant differences in knowledge of breast cancer based on level of education (χ2 = 15.670; p =.001), monthly income (χ2 =6.954; p = .021) and ever screened (χ2 =5.242; p =.015). Lack of money (48.0%) and lack of knowledge (30.4%) were the most reported barriers to breast cancer screening. Women that had ever screened were 92.3% less likely willing to be screened than those never screened (aOR: .077, 95%CI .011-.522, p=.009).

CONCLUSION: Health Education should be combined with improving women's economic status and subsidizing the cost of screening to increase breast cancer screening practice.