Knowledge, attitude, and practice of breast self-examination amongst female IT professionals in Silicon Valley of India

INTRODUCTION: Breast cancer is one of the leading causes of cancer deaths among women in India today. Overall outcome of this disease is largely dependent on early detection and medical intervention. Breast self-examination (BSE) is an easy, cost effective, and safe method of screening for the same. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional descriptive questionnaire-based study was conducted among female IT professionals and their scores in the fields of knowledge, attitude, and practice were calculated. The scores were categorized linearly as good, fair, and poor, then analyzed in detail. The correlation between knowledge and attitude, attitude and practice, and knowledge and practice were ascertained using the Spearman's rank correlation coefficient. RESULTS: About 356 women spanning from 18 to 55 years of age were included in the study, out of which 44 women (12.35%) gave family history of breast cancer. The mean scores in knowledge, attitude, and practice fields were 18.17 ± 2.90, 27.07 ± 8.14, and 19.11 ± 5.08, respectively. Spearman's rank correlation coefficient revealed that knowledge and attitude were not correlated, attitude and practice were not correlated; but knowledge and practice were extremely correlated. CONCLUSION: Educational programs to create awareness regarding breast cancer and its occurrence, risk factors, screening including BSE, symptoms, need for early help-seeking practices, diagnosis, and treatment modalities are the need of the hour.