Age Perceptions, Knowledge, and Preventive Behaviors Regarding Cervical Cancer: Analysis from the 2005 Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS).

Abstract

Cervical cancer is considered to be the third most common type of cancer in women, and the second largest cause of deaths in women. Its toll is greatest in population that lack screening programs to detect precursor lesions (Roden, 2006). Almost all cervical cancer is caused by HPV (Human Papillomavirus), a common virus that is spread through sexual intercourse (Roden, 2006). It is widely believed among experts that most women who are diagnosed with cervical cancer today have not had regular pap smears or they have not followed up on abnormal Pap smear results. But the question is how knowledgeable are women regarding this deadly disease which is curable when detected early. We used a national representative sample of women in an exploratory analysis to shed light on how age differences characterize the perceptions, knowledge and prevention behaviors of cervical cancer. The five classes of women we investigated were women ages 18 – 34; 35 – 49; 50 – 64; 64 – 74; and 75+. The results indicate that women ages 50 – 64 were the most opinionated regarding the characteristics of cervical cancer.