Evaluation of the Knowledge, Behavior and Health Beliefs of Individuals over 50 Regarding Colorectal Cancer Screening

Abstract

The aim of the study was to evaluate of the knowledge, behavior and health beliefs of individuals over 50regarding colorectal cancer screening, with a descriptive and cross-sectional design at Karabuk Life and HealthCenter in Turkey. A total of 160 people meeting set criteria were included in the study. The questionnaireconsisted of two parts. The first part was composed of questions on characteristics of participants and the secondpart of questions derived from the Champion’s Health Belief Model Scale. Only 15.0% of participants (n=24)had undergone a fecal occult blood test (FOBT), 11.3% (n=18) had had colonoscopy and 4.4% (n=7) had hadsigmoidoscopy. Some 90.6% of the participants had low levels of risk awareness about the colorectal cancer. Itwas found that the average point of severity subscale of participants over 65 is higher than that of participantsunder 65 (p<0.05). In conclusion, because of the many barriers and health beliefs for the colorectal cancerscreening program, the rate of participation in screening programs is not sufficient. Healthcare providers haveimportant responsibilities for increasing rate of attendance in colorectal cancer screening programs.