Abstract :
Background: Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in women aged 15-44 years. The key to
reducing cervical cancer morbidity and mortality is early detection and treatment of cervical pre-cancerous
lesions through PAP and HPV tests.
Objective: To explore the level of awareness about cervical cancer among women and to assess their
awareness regarding preventive screening methods available and its utilization and perceptions.
Methodology: A cross sectional community-based study was conducted on 120 women above 18 years of
age. The study participants were randomly selected from four urban areas of Hubli and interviewed using a
pretested semi structured questionnaire. The data was entered into Microsoft excel and analysed using SPSS.
Results: In our study, 91.7% had not even heard of cervical cancer. 77.5% participants did not know the
cause for cervical cancer. 29% thought it was preventable. Less than 1% had undergone screening tests.
None of the women were vaccinated against HPV infection. 42% of the women think that cancer treatment
facility is available in government hospital and 40% think that it’s available only in private hospitals with
18% having no idea where to go for treatment.
Conclusions: As women are ignorant about the risk of cervical cancer and don’t prioritise their health,
awareness can be created among them on days of ANC check-ups and immunisation. Health care workers
also need to be sensitised towards the issue. There is need for effective and more efficient use of mass
media in spreading awareness in form of advertisements, articles etc.
Keyword :
Cervical cancer, Health education, Screening, Treatment