knowledge, attitude, practice, and associated factors of breast cancer self-examination among urban health extension workers in addis ababa, central ethiopia

Background & aim: breast cancer is one of the leading cancer types among women. in ethiopia, the knowledge, attitude and practice among health extension workers (hews) towards breast cancer self-examination are not well understood. therefore, this study assessed knowledge, attitude, and practice (kap) of breast cancer self-examination (bcse) and associated factors among hews. methods: this cross-sectional study was conducted from october to november 2017 among female hews in addis ababa, using self-administered questionnaire. multivariate logistic regression was used to assess factors associated with kap of the bcse. adjusted odds ratio (aor) with 95% confidence interval (95% ci) was used to assess statistical significance. results: a total of 453(89.2%) hews participated in this study. close to two-third (64.0%) of the respondents had adequate knowledge on breast cancer signs, symptoms, and practice of bcse. however, only 146(40.0%) of the respondents practiced bcse on a monthly basis. the majority (81.0%) of the respondents had a positive attitude towards bcse. work experience ranging from one to four years (aor: 2.8; 95%ci: 1.2, 6.4)and ≥five years(aor: 2.4; 95%ci: 1.1, 5.7), familiarity with people who had history of breast cancer (aor: 1.7; 95%ci: 1.1, 2.6),perceived susceptibility (aor: 1.8; 95 %ci: 1.2, 3.0), and knowledge of bcse(aor: 2.3; 95 %ci: 1.4, 3.7) were significant predictors of bcse. conclusion: more than half of hews had adequate knowledge and attitude towards bcse; however, only a few put them into practice. with regard to in-service training focusing on severity, consequences and detection methods of breast cancer may enhance the bcse practices of the hews.