Breast cancer is the most common and leading cause of cancer mortality among Malaysian women. Despite good survival rates, the diagnosis of cancer still invokes the feeling of stress, fear and uncertainty. Because very little is known about the experiences of Malaysian women with breast cancer, a qualitative study using semistructured interviews to explore the lived experience of newly diagnosed breast cancer. Using a purposive sampling method, 20 Malaysian women newly diagnosed with breast cancer, including Malays (n=10) and Chinese (n=10) were recruited in two main public hospitals in Kelantan. Similarities and divergence in women's experience were identified through thematic analysis of interview transcripts. Three themes emerged from the data: uncertainty experience of the illness, transition process and fatalistic view of breast cancer. In many ways, these findings were parallel with previous studies, suggesting that the experience of breast cancer is to a certain extent similar among women newly diagnosed with breast cancer. This study adds to the sparse literature concerning the experience of illness following breast cancer diagnosis among the Malays and Chinese. More importantly, this study addressed areas that were previously lacking, specifically in depth information on breast cancer experience from a developing country with a multi-ethnic population. The results of this investigation provide preliminary information to healthcare professionals on the impact of illness and cultural influence on survivorship to plan for appropriate education and supportive programme in order to meet the needs of breast cancer women more effectively.

Background: Pregnancy complications are a main cause of maternal mortality. Studies suggest not all women regard pregnancy complications as abnormal, owing to a lack of knowledge about ‘danger signs’. Danger signs in pregnancy include vaginal bleeding, severe headache or blurred vision, severe abdominal pain, swollen hands and face, reduced fetal movement, weakness and difficulty in breathing. Aims: To assess the level and associated factors of knowledge about pregnancy danger signs among antenatal women in Malaysia. Methods: A cross-sectional design using a modified questionnaire was employed with 178 antenatal women. Results: More than half of the antenatal women were lacking in knowledge of pregnancy danger signs. A significant association was found between the age, level of education, working status and monthly household income of antenatal women and their level of knowledge. Conclusion: The study revealed the knowledge level of these antenatal women about pregnancy danger signs was inadequate. Therefore, it is necessary for maternal health services to empower antenatal women to understand the danger signs of pregnancy complications.

No abstract

This is a cross-sectional, descriptive study among Malay women admitted in the antenatal and postnatal ward to determine the prevalence and use of herbal medicines during pregnancy and elemental analysis in the most popular herbs. A total of 460 women were surveyed. Herbal medicine use during pregnancy was 34.3%, while 73% utilized herbal medicines during labor, because of a belief that it may shorten and ease labor. The most commonly used herbal medicines in pregnancy were Anastatica hierochuntica L. (60.1%) followed by coconut oil (35.4%). The majority of women (89.2%) used only one type of herbal medicines and took one capsule/glass (38%) per day. Herbal medicines use by pregnant women is largely unsupervised (81%), with most women getting information from their parents (60.7%) and buying the products directly from traditional midwives (32.2%) and 77% agreed upon its efficacy and safety. From the 460 respondents, 89.8% women were in the low end of the herbs knowledge. There was a significant difference found between knowledge score and income (P < 0.05). Microdiffraction analysis revealed significant presence of carbon, oxygen, silica, calcium, magnesium, aluminium, potassium, zinc, and iron that were found in Anastatica hierochuntica L. and proved to have good benefits for pregnancy.

Background: Ovarian cancer is recognized as the fourth leading cancer in Malaysia. However, women do not always seek help in a timely manner and gaps in awareness may influence screening uptake and presentation. The purpose of this study was to determine levels of awareness of ovarian cancer risk factors in female population in Penang, Malaysia. Materials and Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted in Penang, Malaysia from January until February 2014. Eighty-seven women were selected by convenient sampling. Awareness of risk factors of ovarian cancer was assessed using a self-administered questionnaire. Data were analyzed using statistical package for the social sciences (SPSS) version 20.0 for descriptive statistics and Pearson chi-square test for the association between socio-demographic data and awareness. A p value ≤0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: In all, 74.7% of participants answered correctly for the risk factor of increasing age, although 94.3% were unaware of increased risk of tall women. A majority, 71.3%, had a low level of awareness of ovarian cancer risk factors. There was a significant association between age and knowledge (p=0.047). Additionally, there was a significant association between higher education level and level of awareness of ovarian cancer risk factors (p=0.039). Conclusions: This study revealed that awareness of ovarian cancer risk factors among Malaysian women is low. The results show a need for improved public understanding about ovarian cancer risks and provision of important information for health professionals about initiatives needed for future awareness, prevention and screening programs.