Assessment of the knowledge and awareness of urinary bladder cancer among the general population in Western Saudi Arabia

BACKGROUND: One of the leading causes of mortality and morbidity worldwide is cancer; this encompasses a challenging health issue for both health providers and the community. Bladder cancer is the ninth most common cancer worldwide. However, few studies have been conducted to estimate the level of knowledge and awareness of urinary bladder cancer among the general population globally and nationally. Therefore, the following study aims to assess the magnitude and level of awareness of urinary bladder cancer among citizens in western Saudi Arabia. METHODOLOGY: The following survey-based cross-sectional study was conducted in Saudi Arabia’s western region from April to May 2019. A structured questionnaire exploring the knowledge of urinary bladder cancer was given to the participants. In addition, participants’ demographics, social determinants, and past personal and family histories were gathered. The sum of the awareness responses was graded as positive or negative and correlated to determinants. RESULTS: A total of 927 participants participated in the study. 74.2% were male, and for most participants, the highest educational level was a university degree (64.7%). The majority of the participants were unmarried (single) (51%) and widowed participants represented the lowest response (3.7%). The majority of the participants were aware of the term “urinary bladder cancer” (78.2%), yet only 24.8% acquainted good knowledge about urinary bladder cancer. CONCLUSION: We found that the citizens in Saudi Arabia have insufficient knowledge of urinary bladder cancer and its detriments.