Knowledge, attitudes, beliefs and practices of the Iranians about cancer: a systematicreview of the previous studies

This study reviewed the literature of Iranians Knowledge, Attitude, Belief and Practice (KABP) about cancer. 61 studies which have published from 2000 to 2014, are retrieved from Iranians scientific databases (Magiran, SID and Medlib) and have been analyzed. Most of these studieswere conducted on women (82%), especially those who referred to the healthcare centers (31.1 %), and mainly on breast cancer (n = 40, 65.6 %), in particular, on its screening tests (41%). Cervical cancer and other type of cancers studied 16.4 % (n = 10) and 18 % (n = 11) of the totalvolume respectively. These studies were conducted on the staffs and students of medical sciences sector (26.2 %), teachers, students and employees of other sectors (18%) and other community groups (24.6 %).The authors have mentioned the relationships between the level ofeducation, family history of cancer, history of previous education, marital status with KAP of cancer; They have reported low level of knowledge (48.8% low, 32.6% medium, 18.6% high), high level of attitude (27.6% low, 34.5% medium, 37.9% high) and low level of practice (73.7%low, 21.1% medium, 5.3% high) among Iranians about cancer. In any cancer control program, this lack of knowledge and practice should be considered along with providing facilities for prevention and screening. Doing several comprehensive studies with broader sample volume aresuggested wherein the factor of beliefs, which not only depends on knowledge and attitudes but also influenced by cultural, religious, traditional, and even superstitious issues, should be considered.

Keywords:

Knowledge , Attitude , Belief , Practice , Cancer , Iranians