KNOWLEDGE AND PRACTICE OF BREAST SELF-EXAMINATION FOR EARLY DETECTION OF BREAST CANCER AMONG WOMEN ATTENDING ANTENATAL CLINIC AT USMANU DANFODIYO UNIVERSITY TEACHING HOSPITAL SOKOTO.

Background: Breast cancer is currently the most common cancer worldwide. Poor outcomes of breast cancer management in Africa are linked to late presentation. Early diagnosis based on breast self-examination and awareness has been advocated. Objective: To develop guidelines for Breast self-examination (BSE) in Nigeria, there is a need for current Knowledge and practice of breast self-examination. This study aims to provide foundational literature in our setting. Methodology: This cross-sectional study assessed knowledge and determined the practice of self-breast Examination of women attending the antenatal Clinic of Usmanu Danfodiyo University Teaching Hospital (UDUTH) Sokoto from January to March 2023. Results: A total of 602 pregnant women participated in the study. The mean age of the respondents was 22±4 years. Most (70.4%) participants had heard about breast cancer. The older age groups were more likely to have heard of BSE. There was a significant relationship between awareness of BSE and level of education (p-0.002), but no significant relationship was found between marital status and awareness of BSE. Most (66.0%) believed that BSE would make them worry about breast cancer. The percentage of positive attitudes increased as a woman is getting older (p-0.0001). A total of 142 participants (23.6%) had ever practiced BSE. Conclusion: This study showed that knowledge of BSE was good, but attitude and practice were unacceptably poor. Age, marital status, education level, and family history of BC were important determinants