Abstract:
Cervical cancer is a significant global health concern affecting young women, with over 500,000 new cases reported annually. This questionnaire-based study aimed to evaluate the knowledge of cervical cancer prevention among female students at the University of Novi Sad during the COVID-19 pandemic using the Cervical Cancer Knowledge Prevention-64 (CCKP-64) tool. The study sample consisted of 402 predominantly 20-22-year-old female students from either social or technical science faculties in urban environments. Results revealed that out of the 402 female students involved in the study, most had a good general knowledge of primary prevention of cervical cancer, with a correct answer rate ranging from 29.9 to 80.6%. On the contrary, only 63.4% of female students have heard about the vaccine against cervical cancer; 52.0% know that the vaccine exists in Serbia; and 31.8% know where to get vaccinated. Only a small proportion of students (9.7%) have encountered cervical cancer among their relatives/friends and think that the disease could affect them in the future (25.4%). Older students (>26 years) generally (p < 0.05) had better knowledge regarding distressing symptoms of cervical cancer, cytological examination and secondary prevention; however, it was also noted that a significant percentage of this age group reported not having received vaccinations (53.0%, p = 0.001). This study underscores the need for increased awareness and education about the HPV vaccine and secondary prevention among young women in Serbia. Future research should investigate knowledge and attitudes toward cervical cancer prevention in diverse populations to develop effective interventions and strategies. These findings have implications for public health policies in Serbia to promote cervical cancer prevention among young women.
摘要:
宫颈癌是影响年轻女性的重要全球健康问题,每年报告超过50万例新病例。这项基于问卷调查的研究旨在使用宫颈癌知识预防64(CCKP-64)工具评估COVID-19大流行期间诺维萨德大学女学生对宫颈癌预防知识的了解。研究样本由402名主要来自城市环境中社会或技术科学学院的20-22岁女学生组成。结果显示,在参与这项研究的402名女学生中,大多数人对宫颈癌的一级预防有很好的常识,正确回答率在29.9%到80.6%之间。相反,只有63.4%的女学生听说过针对宫颈癌的疫苗;52.0%的人知道疫苗存在于塞尔维亚;31.8%的人知道在哪里接种疫苗。只有一小部分学生(9.7%)在其亲戚/朋友中遇到过宫颈癌,并认为该疾病将来会影响他们(25.4%)。年龄较大的学生(>26岁)通常(p<0.05)对宫颈癌的痛苦症状有更好的了解,细胞学检查和二级预防;然而,还指出,该年龄组中有很大一部分报告没有接种疫苗(53.0%,p=0.001)。这项研究强调了塞尔维亚年轻女性对HPV疫苗和二级预防的认识和教育的必要性。未来的研究应该调查不同人群对宫颈癌预防的知识和态度,以制定有效的干预措施和策略。这些发现对塞尔维亚促进年轻女性宫颈癌预防的公共卫生政策有影响。