Beliefs About Cervical Cancer Screening Among Turkish Married Women

Abstract

Cervical cancer can be prevented by having a Pap test aiming for early screening. This study was planned to determine the beliefs of women about cervical cancer and the influencing factors. The cross-sectional study was conducted in SarA +/- yer, one of the most densely populated districts of Istanbul, which is the most crowded city in Turkey. This study sample included 300 women receiving training at public education centers. The data for the study were collected with "HBM-based scale" developed by Bryd et al. upon the basis of health belief model. The mean of the women's ages was determined as 33.9 +/- 10.6. Considering the beliefs of the women who haven't had a Pap test about cervical cancer, it was determined that 75.7% of the women participating in the survey thought "I am not at risk for cervical cancer". Logistic regression analysis was carried out in order to find out the most decisive variable among the reasons for not having a Pap test, and it was determined that the factors stated as "I don't know where I could go if I wanted a Pap test" was a four times factor. This study demonstrated that the main determinant factor affecting CCS behaviors of married women is beliefs. It is considered that the results from this study could be basic data for cervical cancer early screening and educational programs.