Knowledge and Utilization of Cervical Cancer Screening Services Among Female Undergraduates at FUTO

Abstract

Background: Globally, cervical cancer is the fourth most common is a type of cancer in women. It that starts in the cervix. The cervix is a hollow cylinder that connects the lower part of a woman’s uterus to her vagina. Cervical cancer is a leading cause of mortality particularly in young women. The aim of this study is to assess the knowledge and utilization of cervical cancer screening services among female undergraduates at Federal University of Technology Owerri. Methods: A descriptive cross sectional research design was adopted for this study. A multi stage sampling technique was used in recruiting a total of 374 female students that participated in this study and a pretested questionnaire was used in the data collection of the study. Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 was used in the analysis of the study. Results: The study showed that, 46.3% (173) of the respondents aged 15-24. From the study, majority of the respondents 85.8% (321) had heard about cervical cancer screening. Most of the respondents 81.9% (306) affirmed they would utilize cervical cancer screening if offered a chance. A good number of the respondents 33.95% (127), mentioned that opined “distance to facility” as one of the factors that influenced the utilization of cervical cancer screening services. Further results from the study based on the relationship between Socio-demographic characteristics and level of knowledge of respondents towards cervical cancer screening services demonstrated that there was a statistically significant relationship between age (p = 0.0035), academic level (p = 0.0023), healthcare plan (p = 0.0327) and level of knowledge of cervical cancer. Conclusion: The study concluded that, while many female undergraduates had a good understanding of cervical cancer screening, this did not translate into a propensity to utilize screening services. From the study, it was recommended that, female undergraduates must have a thorough understanding of cervical cancer and how to prevent it.