Fatalistic Breast Cancer Beliefs and Health Screening Attitudes among Adolescent Girls in Ilorin, Kwara state.

Abstract

Background: Breast cancer in the young presents a major health challenge in Nigeria. Delayed diagnosis, often driven by low community awareness, contributes significantly to late presentation and poor survival outcomes. Understanding awareness, beliefs, and attitudes is crucial for promoting early diagnosis, which is directly associated with improved survival. This study aimed to explore the beliefs, attitudes toward breast cancer, and screening practices among adolescent girls in Ilorin, Kwara State, Nigeria.

Materials and Methods: We conducted a cross-sectional survey among 433 female senior secondary school students (aged 12 to 22 years) randomly selected from schools across the three local government areas of Ilorin. Data were collected using a questionnaire adapted from the modified Breast Cancer Screening Beliefs Questionnaire. Consent was obtained from both participants and their parents. All items were rated on a five-point Likert scale, where a response of "disagree" or "strongly disagree" indicated less fatalistic beliefs and a more proactive attitude toward health screening.

Results: The Cronbach's alpha ranged from 0.66 to 0.79. The study showed that the participants had good awareness and poor practice of breast cancer screening, demonstrated a proactive inclination toward general health screening, while they simultaneously held strong fatalistic beliefs about breast cancer.

Conclusions and Recommendations: The presence of strong fatalistic beliefs, despite a tendency toward proactive screening, suggests a significant psychological barrier to early breast cancer detection efforts. Interventions focused on educating young women and challenging fatalistic beliefs are urgently needed.