Assessing the role of cervical cancer awareness in shaping attitudes toward the disease among Palestinian women

TL;DR

This study explores how awareness of cervical cancer causation influences Palestinian women's attitudes toward the disease.

Contribution

The study identifies that awareness of cervical cancer causation myths is linked to more positive attitudes, unlike awareness of symptoms or risk factors.

Findings

Only 27.4%, 23.6%, and 8.1% of participants showed high awareness of cervical cancer symptoms, risk factors, and causation myths, respectively.

Women with high awareness of causation myths were 1.83 times more likely to have positive attitudes toward cervical cancer.

Educational efforts should focus on improving understanding of cervical cancer causation to foster better attitudes.

Abstract

Attitudes toward a disease may influence the perception and interpretation of symptoms and treatment options. This study aimed to assess the role of cervical cancer (CC) awareness in shaping attitudes toward the disease among Palestinian women. This cross-sectional study was conducted from July 2019 to March 2020, and women were recruited from governmental hospitals, primary healthcare centers, and public places utilizing convenience sampling. Modified, translated-into-Arabic versions of the CC Awareness Measure and Cancer Awareness Measure-Mythical Causes Scale were utilized to assess the awareness of CC symptoms, risk factors, and causation myths. A total of 7058 participants were included. Only 27.4%, 23.6%, and 8.1% exhibited high awareness of CC symptoms, risk factors, and causation myths, respectively. Women with high awareness of CC causation myths were more likely to exhibit positive attitudes toward CC than those with low awareness (OR = 1.83, 95% CI 1.51–2.23). However, there were no associations between displaying high awareness of CC symptoms and risk factors and showing positive attitudes toward CC. Good understanding of CC causation seems to be positively associated with exhibiting favorable attitudes toward the disease. Educational initiatives may prioritize enhancing public awareness of CC causation to optimize the cultivation of positive attitudes.

The online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1038/s41598-025-08068-1.

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