Desmalee Holder-Nevins, MPH, CHES, Department of Community Health & Psychiatry, The University of the West Indies, Gibralter Camp Rd, Mona Campus, Mona Kingston 7, Jamaica, 876-9975143, d_levins@hotmail.com, Isolyn Bell-Rose, FNP, RN, RM, Western Regional Health Authority, Trelawny Health Department, Falmouth PO, Falmouth, Trelawny, Jamaica, and Sheila Campbell-Forrester, MBBS, DPH, Ministry of Health, Western Regional Health Authority, C/O Cornwall Regional Hospital, Mt Salem, Montego Bay, Jamaica.

Women’s perception about breast cancer, breast self examination (BSE), clinical exam and mammography were compared with relevant practices. A multistage sampling technique was used to select 720 women 25-54 years of age from 25 clusters of enumeration districts in four Western Parishes of Jamaica. A structured questionnaire was used to gather data and in-depth interviews explored participants’ feelings regarding fear of cancer and triggers to taking preventive actions. Quantitative data were analysed using SPSS (8.2). Themes were extracted and summarized from qualitative data. Cancer was ranked second to HIV/AIDS as the illness most feared by women in this study. Women from rural communities were more likely to report this (p=0.005). Eighty per cent of respondents perceived BSE as a means of assessing the health of their breast and for early detection of cancer and other abnormalities. A small proportion of women e (19.6%) were able to correctly demonstrate the procedure for doing a BSE. While the majority reported examining their breast at least once monthly, rural women were more likely to report that they did not know how to do BSE (p=0.000). There was a significant relationship between frequency of BSE and how it is performed (p=0.014). Seeking health services for clinical breast examination and mammography were not correlated with fear of breast cancer. There is lack of skills, especially among rural women, in correctly examining the breasts. Clinical breast exam though perceived as important did not result in corresponding behaviours and awareness of mammography was low among these women.

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