Knowledge of esophageal cancer and preventive behaviors among nursing students – a cross-sectional study

Introduction and aim. There is a gap in nursing student understanding, knowledge, and preventive behaviors concerning esophageal cancer. This study aimed to investigate knowledge, risk factors, and preventive behaviors among Turkish nursing students. Material and methods. A descriptive cross-sectional survey was performed. The questionnaire was conducted online over a four-month period. A convenience sample of 688 undergraduate nursing students was recruited from health science faculty at three universities in Türkiye. The survey was performed using a self-administered questionnaire. The reliability coefficients of the knowledge test were calculated, yielding Cronbach’s alpha (0.952), KR-20 (0.952), and KR-21 (0.945), respectively. A significance level p<0.05 was accepted. Results. The mean age of the study group was 20±1.86 (min: 17, max: 32). The study group consists of 487 women (70.8%) and 201 men (29.2%). Most of the study population report never using alcohol and smoking (88.4%, 73.1%, respectively), and reported paying attention to oral hygiene (88.5%). Nursing students had a low family history of EC (0.4%), obesity (10.2%), and vitamin deficiency (19.2%) which are risk factors. Knowledge of esophageal cancer risks was low (x̄=14.34±9.53; Min=0; Max=31). Total knowledge scores have higher for students with complaints of EC, vitamin deficiency, and diagnosis of Human Papilloma Virus disease (p<0.05). Conclusion. This study showed that there are significant gaps in the knowledge of nursing students and these need to be addressed through an improved nursing curriculum. In this context, the study can be used as important evidence and a resource in the issues that should be given priority to in the training and research needed to increase the knowledge and awareness of future nurses about esophageal cancer.