The relationship between health sciences students' knowledge of cancer and behavioral styles

Abstract

Objective: This study aimed to determine the relationship between knowledge of cancer and behavioral styles of health sciences faculty students registered at a state university. Method: The study is cross-sectional and descriptive. The study sample consisted of 1204 students at the Faculty of Health Sciences of a state university in Istanbul during the 2018-2019 fall semester. The Questionnaire Form and Miller Behavioral Style Scale (MBSS) were administered to the students. The data were evaluated using the SPSS package program in the computer environment. Results: The students’ mean age was 20.74±2.603. It was determined that at least one relative of 32.2% of the students had cancer, grandfathers mostly had cancer, and lung cancer was the most common cancer. A statistically significant difference was found upon examining the knowledge of cancer risks and early diagnosis methods of the students with and without a family history of cancer. The mean MBSS score was found to be 6.49±4.085 for students with a family history of cancer, and 5.97±4.092 for students without a family history of cancer. There was a significant difference when statistically comparing the mean MBSS scores of the students with and without a family history of cancer. Conclusion: Students with a family history of cancer were more knowledgeable about cancer risk factors and early diagnosis methods and applied early diagnosis methods such as mammography, clinical breast examination, and endoscopic examinations. Furthermore, the mean MBSS scores of students with a family history of cancer were higher than those without a family history of cancer.