Determinants of Cervical Cancer Awareness, Screening Knowledge, and Preventive Practices among Reproductive-Age Women in Bangladesh: A Hospital-Based Cross-Sectional Study

Abstract

In the next paper, the socio-demographic profile and level of knowledge will be discussed as far as cervical cancer is concerned in relation to the reproductive-age women who attend the OPDs of the Dhaka medical college hospital. It was a descriptive cross-sectional study that utilized the measures of awareness, perception of risk factors, symptoms, screening procedures and HPV vaccination. The results indicate that the majority of respondents had the age between 20-39 years old, were married and had different backgrounds in terms of education and income. Even though 69.48 per cent heard about cervical cancer, 69.48 per cent were not well-informed with only 31.82 per cent having information on the interventions that can screen cervical cancer and 32.47 per cent having information on HPV vaccination. In all, forty five point one nine percent or 55.19% of the respondents were poor in knowledge with only twelve point three four or 12.34 percent having excellent knowledge. It was discovered that knowledge was significantly connected with the level of education and place of residence where women in cities as well as those who are highly educated were more knowledgeable. This study revealed that the gap in knowledge of preventive measures and disparity of access to health information are huge. It highlights the critical role of specific awareness campaigns, enhanced health education and enhanced screening efforts to decrease cervical cancer in Bangladesh.