The impact of education on breast cancer screening in Northeast of Iran population

Introduction and Aim: Breast cancer is a worldwide public health issue. Studies indicate that one third of cancers are preventable and another third are treatable if diagnosed early. Unfortunately, most breast cancer patients are diagnosed at advanced stages in Iran. Therefore, early diagnosis through screening can significantly reduce the burden of disease. This study was conducted to analyze the impact of education on prevention and early diagnosis of breast cancer in northeast of Iran population.Methods: In a case control design, 348 patients with breast cancer were compared to 514 healthy, normal women. Education and sociodemographic factors were documented using a questionnaire. Statistical analysis was performed using SPSS Ver16. P-value less than 0.05 were considered significant. Results: The study indicated that history of screening was higher in control group than breast cancer patients (p=0.001). Also, there was a significant difference in level of education between the two groups (p=0.000). Individuals with higher levels of education were more likely to participate in screening than those with less education (p=0.001). Moreover, screening was correlated with high level of financial status (p=0.000) and family history (p=0.008) of cancer. Conclusion: Many factors contribute to the absence of breast cancer screening. This study noticeably highlights the critical role of educational level in the probability of cancer screening. Public awareness and teaching breast self-examination can help prevention and early diagnosis of breast cancer. It is recommended to implement breast cancer screening program in public health policies.

کلیدواژه ها:

Education ، Breast cancer ، Screening ، Breast self-examination ، Awareness