Cervical cancer screening knowledge and barriers among women in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia

Abstract

Background: Cervical cancer is the second commonest cancer among women living in less developed countries. Women infected with the Human Immunodeficiency Virus (HIV) are at increased risk. However cervical cancer screening for HIV infected women has been started in limited centers in Addis Ababa, data on the uptake of this service are lacking. Therefore, this study aimed to assess the level and predictors of cervical cancer screening uptake among HIV positive women in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. Methods: A cross-sectional study was conducted using a structured questionnaire on 411 HIV infected

Role of awareness on cervical cancer screening uptake among HIV positive women in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. A cross-sectional study

“…According to this study, majority of the respondents (81.8%) had heard about cervical cancer which is comparable with a similar study conducted in Gondar 87.7% (16) and significantly higher than another study conducted in Gondar (49.6%) (17) and 56.2% in Nigeria (20). Those who had heard about cervical cancer screening in this study were 76.1%, which is higher than 37.8% from a study in Gondar (17), 42.7% in Addis Ababa (25) and 34.5% in Nigeria (20). The source of information in the majority of the cases was health personnel which was similar to other study conducted in Addis Ababa (18).…”

Communicative challenges among physicians, patients, and family caregivers in cancer care: An exploratory qualitative study in Ethiopia

“…These attitudes are motivated by a strong wish not to upset family members, but also by a fear of social stigma and discrimination, as cancer is widely perceived as God's punishment [6,20,49]. However, the practice impedes communication and contributes to a delay in obtaining healthcare and a diagnosis, adding to other factors revealed in our data and highlighted in other studies, such as illiteracy, lack of cancer awareness, limited knowledge about cancer, high travel costs to Addis Ababa, and preferences for traditional medicine [14,17,19,50]. Due to unnecessary delays in diagnosis, many patients are diagnosed with an advanced disease that cannot be cured and can only be offered palliative treatment, which makes it additionally difficult for physicians to communicate the prognosis [14,25].…”

“…Cancer awareness and knowledge in Ethiopia is low, especially relating to cervical cancer [15], but also regarding breast cancer [16]. In addition, the lack of a national screening system and low access to relevant healthcare service reportedly contribute to inefficient testing and late diagnosis and treatment, which results in many women seeking help too late [14,[17][18][19]. There are also barriers that prevent many Ethiopians from seeking medical help such as a sense of hopelessness and anxiety [9], a fatalistic attitude [20], stigmatization and social isolation in relation to particular diagnoses (for instance, the etiology of cervical cancer is thought to be due to breaching social taboos or engaging in unacceptable behaviors [18]), ignoring early signs and symptoms [21], a lack of resources to cover treatment costs, and a tendency to turn to traditional healers in the first instance [14,22].…”

Determinants of precancerous cervical lesion among women screened for cervical cancer in south Ethiopia: A case-control study

“…There are a limited research in Ethiopia on risk factors of precancerous cervical lesion (15,19). Most of the research done in Ethiopia focused on awareness, prevalence, determinants of cervical cancer screening and risk factors of cervical cancer in HIV positive women (11,12,19,20). To the best of our knowledge this is the first study to identify determinants of precancerous cervical lesions in south Ethiopia.…”

“…Currently, in Ethiopia cervical cancer screening centres have begun to provide cervical screening services (10). However, awareness, uptake and acceptance of cervical cancer screening is low (11)(12)(13)(14).…”