CANCER-DETECTION - HOW EFFECTIVE IS PUBLIC-EDUCATION

The American Cancer Society has been educating the public about cancer detection methods since 1922. Originally, only two warning signs were published; however for more than 40 years, there have been seven canc er warning signs. In an attempt to evaluate the public knowledge of ca ncer detection and prevention, this pilot study examined the attitudes , knowledge and behaviors of 172 laypersons. The instrument used consi sted of four sections and was designed by the investigator and the gra duate nursing research class. The first section contained 30 questions about the individual, health practices, and risk status in a forced-c hoice format. Ability to identify the seven cancer warning signals was the second section. Attitudes toward Cancer Detection methods were ev aluated in a semantic differential format as the third section. The li st section contained 24 Likert-formatted statements of beliefs about t he importance of cancer detection. Before data analysis, a Cronbach's alpha was obtained on each scale and ranged from 0.8031 to 0.8897. Eig hty nine (52%) of the respondents were women and 83 (48%) were men The sample was 85% white, 11% African-American, and 4% other ethnic group s. Ninety-four percent of the population had some form of health insur ance. Gender was not significantly related to scores on the Attitudes toward Cancer Detection or the Beliefs about Cancer Scale. Race was si gnificantly related to scores on the Attitudes toward Cancer Detection Scale. Nineteen percent of the sample could not identify any of the c ancer warning signs. The median number of warning signs correctly iden tified as warning signals was three. Thirty-two items were incorrectly listed as warning signs. Survival of cancer is linked with early dete ction. The inability to influence changes in knowledge and practices o ver the past 50 years is examined. Implications for nurses and teachin g related to cancer warning signs are explored.