Barriers and facilitators to breast cancer screening among women in primary care settings

Objective: To explore barriers and facilitators to breast cancer screening among women in primary care settings. Methodology: This descriptive study was done in May 2024 and involved a purposive sample of 234 women from outpatient-clinics at Beni-Suef University Hospitals. Interview for knowledge and practices of women regarding breast cancer screening, barriers to breast cancer screening and facilitators to breast cancer screening were used. Results: We found that 54.3% of women demonstrated good knowledge regarding breast cancer prevention. For physical activity, 71.8% engaged in correct practices. Practices related to Breast Self-Examination were correct for 76.5% of women. Overall, 55.6% reported good practices. Furthermore, 86.8% of women faced strong barriers to breast cancer screening. Only 11.1% of women had high awareness of facilitators to breast cancer screening. Conclusion: More than half of the women demonstrate good knowledge. Less than three-fifths reported good practices and a high percentage of women faced strong barriers to breast cancer screening.