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PURPOSE Cervical cancer is a significant health issue worldwide. In 2020, it accounted for 604 000 new cases and 342 000 deaths (WHO, 2022), with low- and middle-income nations contributing over 90% of new cases and related deaths worldwide (Sung, 2021). Nigeria has one of the highest rates of human papillomavirus (HPV)-related diseases in Sub-Saharan Africa (Bruni et al, 2021). Lack of awareness about cervical cancer prevention was reported in 72.2% of studies of young people (Adewumi et al., 2022). This study aimed to evaluate the effect of cervical cancer prevention interactive education program on female student`s knowledge and willingness to prevent cervical cancer in Northwest Nigeria. METHODS We employed a quasi-experimental design with a self-administered questionnaire for data collection. Respondents were of ages 18-35 years recruited by clustering faculties and using systematic sampling method. Information about cervical cancer and prevention was administered twice, with a 6-hour interval after the education by lecture method using power-point. Data analysis was by using Statistical Package for the Social Sciences (SPSS) version 26. Descriptive and inferential statistics for frequency distribution, chi square test and paired t-test were computed. RESULTS Knowledge mean score for cervical cancer improved from (11.33±7.28) at pre intervention to (21.20±47) at post intervention phase. Knowledge of cervical cancer prevention also increased, from a mean score of 0.99 to 1.44 between pre- and post-test. The intention towards preventing cervical cancer also increased from an aggregate mean score at pretest of 1.11 to 1.37 at posttest. The paired t- test also showed a difference in the mean pretest and post test score (t =4.406 p = 0.012) and implied knowledge gain for cervical cancer prevention. CONCLUSION Educational intervention was effective at improving student`s knowledge of cervical cancer and their intent to prevent it. We therefore recommend that educational interventions should be carried out among students in northwest Nigeria.
Mfuh et al. (Mon,) studied this question.