Knowledge and Attitude to Breast Self-Examination Among a Cohort of Medical Students in Nigeria

Background: Breast cancer is a leading cause of cancer mortality worldwide with a gloomy outcome especially in late presentation commonly seen in developing nations. Early detection through screening however improves the prognosis and patient survival. Breast self examination is a recognized and acceptable modality for screening breast cancers especially inresource scarce settings since early detection and treatment offers appreciable benefit to the patient. The objective of this studyis to assess the knowledge, attitude and practice of breast self examination (BSE) among a group of potential healthcare givers.Methodology: This was a self administered questionnaire based study carried out on a class of final year medical students in a Nigerian Teaching Hospital.Results: There were a total of 98 respondents aged between 24 and 39 years (mean = 27.4 years). There were 59 (60.2%) males and 39 (39.8%) females (M: F= 3:2). Ninety three (94.9%) respondents have heard of BSE with only 5% having adequate knowledge of BSE. Twenty nine (74.4%) of the female respondents practice BSE.Conclusion: There is poor knowledge, attitude and practice of BSE among final year medical students of the Jos University Teaching Hospital