Comprehensive Evaluation of Breast Cancer Awareness, Risk Factors, and Early Detection among Rural Married Women
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Abstract
Background: Breast cancer, the most prevalent malignancy among women, demands early detection. Rural married women in Nawabganj Upazila face risk from low education and scarce healthcare. Objective: This study aims to evaluate breast cancer knowledge, risk factor recognition, and early detection practices among married women in selected villages of Nawabganj Upazila, Dinajpur, to inform targeted intervention strategies. Methods: A cross-sectional descriptive study was conducted from January to June 2022 among 183 married women in Nawabganj Upazila, Dinajpur using random sampling. Data were collected through face-to-face interviews with a structured questionnaire covering socio-demographic variables and breast cancer knowledge. Statistical analyses, including descriptive statistics, frequency distributions, standard deviation, and inferential tests with p-values, were performed using SPSS for robust evaluation. Results: In this study, 69 (37.7%) respondents were aged 30–40 years; 138 (75.4%) were housewives. Among participants, 111 (60.7%) married between ages 12–19 years and 78 (42.6%) had a marriage duration of 11–20 years. Additionally, 162 (88.5%) were Muslim, and 90 (49.2%) reported a monthly family income below 10,000 takas. The mean knowledge score was 68.5 (SD = 12.4). A significant difference in scores was observed between education levels (p = 0.032). Subgroup analysis indicated that tertiary-educated respondents averaged 75.2, while primary-educated scored 62.3, revealing a 13-point gap (p = 0.005) that underscores education’s impact, with a 5% variance among age groups and a 7% higher proficiency in secondary-educated respondents, statistically significant difference. Conclusions: The study concludes that rural married women exhibit moderate breast cancer awareness, influenced by education levels. Targeted interventions are urgently needed to bridge knowledge gaps and promote early detection practices.
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