THE RELATIONSHIP OF HEALTH LITERACY WITH PERCEPTION OF HEALTH AND CANCER SCREENING ATTITUDES IN CLIMACTERIC WOMEN

Purpose: The climacteric period represents a period when women's health risks increase, including cancer. This study aimed to investigate the relationship between health literacy, health perception, and cancer screening attitudes of women in the climacteric period. Methods: The sample of this cross-sectional study consisted of 322 women aged between 45 and 65 years. Data were collected using the Short-Form Health Literacy Instrument, Attitude Scale for Cancer Screening, and Health Perception Scale. Independent Samples T-test, One-way ANOVA, Pearson correlation analysis, and Linear regression analysis were used to analyze data. Results: The average age of the women was 49.14±5.33 years. The rate of women who had a cancer screening in the last five years was 30.4%. Of the women who had cancer screening, 46.2% had a pap smear, 46.9% had a mammography, and 6.9% had a colonoscopy. The health literacy average score was 29.35±9.75, the attitude for cancer screening average score was 92.94±15.80, and the health perception average score was 44.07±7.62. A low level of positive correlation was found between health literacy and attitudes toward cancer screening and health perception (p