The Knowledge of Female Students Regarding the Human Papilloma Virus and Vaccines at a Selected University in South Africa

Abstract

Background: The Human Papillomavirus (HPV) is one of the viruses that causes high mortality rates worldwide, and if not detected and treated early, it may lead to fatal complications such as cervical cancer and breast cancer. Purpose: The aim of this study was to determine the knowledge of female students regarding the Human Papillomavirus (HPV) and its vaccines at a selected University in the Limpopo Province, South Africa. Methods: A quantitative approach was adopted in this cross-sectional descriptive study. The target population was all female students residing in the university residences on campus, and a sample size of 310 students was determined. A systematic sampling technique was used to select the rooms of students, and a self-administered questionnaire was used to collect data. Data collected was analysed using SPSS version 26, and results were presented in the form of frequency and percentages. Results: Out of the 310 respondents, 56.8% had never heard about the HPV, while 43.2% had heard about the HPV and its vaccines. The majority (82.9%) of the respondents were uncertain about the two HPV vaccines available in South Africa, while only 1.9% of the respondents knew that anal cancer is one of the health problems related to HPV. The results of the study further showed that 56.8% of the respondents did not know whether the HPV vaccines prevented cervical cancer or not, while only 6.1% disagreed that the HPV vaccines prevented cervical cancer. Conclusion: The study concludes that the female students at the selected university had insufficient knowledge regarding HPV and its vaccines. Since cervical cancer is one of the major causes of death in low and middle-income countries, knowledge regarding HPV and its vaccines is crucial, especially among the young generation, in order to promote the effective prevention of cervical cancer. Community and university radios should have programs about health promotion issues informing the communities about HPV and its vaccines.

Human Papillomavirus Vaccination in South Africa: Programmatic Challenges and Opportunities for Integration With Other Adolescent Health Services?

“…There have been calls to expand the reach of the South African HPV vaccination programme given the unique epidemiology of HPV infection and co-burden of other sexually transmitted infections (including chlamydia, genital herpes, gonorrhea, mycoplasma genitalium, and trichomoniasis) among AGYW >15 years of age (33). Several studies (34)(35)(36)(37) conducted among AGYW >15 years in South African universities either prior to, or following the nationwide roll-out of the HPV vaccination programme have generally reported suboptimal levels of knowledge about HPV, cervical cancer, and the HPV vaccine within this population, which contributes to low-risk perceptions, and risky sexual behaviors and practices. Despite this, female university students consistently demonstrate high levels of HPV vaccine acceptance and willingness to vaccinate if the HPV vaccine were made available to them (34)(35)(36)(37).…”

“…Several studies (34)(35)(36)(37) conducted among AGYW >15 years in South African universities either prior to, or following the nationwide roll-out of the HPV vaccination programme have generally reported suboptimal levels of knowledge about HPV, cervical cancer, and the HPV vaccine within this population, which contributes to low-risk perceptions, and risky sexual behaviors and practices. Despite this, female university students consistently demonstrate high levels of HPV vaccine acceptance and willingness to vaccinate if the HPV vaccine were made available to them (34)(35)(36)(37). The increased risk of HPV infection makes AGYW >15 years good candidates for targeted interventions aimed at accelerating the prevention of new cervical cancer cases while the observed positive attitude to the HPV vaccine could suggest optimal coverage rates should the vaccination programme be extended to include this population.…”

Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices among Women of Reproductive Age on Human Papillomavirus Infection, Cervical Cancer and Vaccination in Otukpo, Nigeria

“…This is relatively high and consistent with the 83.8% and 63.3% reported by comparable maternity clinic-based studies in Nigeria ( 22 ) and Russia ( 23 ) respectively. However, school-based survey on females reported lower awareness level of 30% in Nigeria ( 24 ) and 43.2% in South Africa ( 25 ). The disparity in awareness between maternity clinic-based and school-based studies could be attributed to public perspectives that adolescents and young female respondents in school-based studies are not matured enough for discussions relating to sexual activity as reported in previous studies ( 26 , 27 ).…”

Human Papillomavirus Knowledge, Perception, and Willingness to Receive Vaccination Among Female University Students in Addis Ababa University, Ethiopia, 2022: A Cross-Sectional Study

“…Out of 200 known HPVs, at least 40 of them spread through sexual contact ( Oluwole et al, 2019 ). While many HPVs establish an infection that is cleared by the host immune system, small types are the most concerning since they are linked to cancer development ( Mushasha et al, 2021 ; Tesfaye et al, 2019 ).…”

“…Out of 200 known HPVs, at least 40 of them spread through sexual contact (Oluwole et al, 2019). While many HPVs establish an infection that is cleared by the host immune system, small types are the most concerning since they are linked to cancer development (Mushasha et al, 2021;Tesfaye et al, 2019). Almost all cases of cervical cancer are caused by HPV with certain types also causing cancers of the vulva, and vagina in females, penile in males, and anal and oropharyngeal cancer in both females and males (Maharajan et al, 2015).…”