Evaluation of a community-based program for breast self-examination offered by the community health nurse practitioners in Korea.

BACKGROUND Breast cancer is the most common form of cancer among Korean women. Only 14% of urban women and 10% of rural women in Korea, however, participated in breast cancer screening behavior in 1998 (Korean Ministry of Health & Welfare, 1999). PURPOSE The aim of this study was to evaluate the effect of community-based breast self-examination (BSE) education programs in Korea. METHODS First, breast cancer risk appraisals were done with 1,977 rural women. Of the 1,977 women, nearly 30% (n= 494) had a higher or equal to borderline risk of developing breast cancer. This quasi-experimental study was conducted to target these women with a high or equal to borderline risk of breast cancer. The risk appraisal feedback and breast self-examination education were used as an intervention for breast cancer prevention and early detection. RESULTS After a 3-month follow-up, 30.5% of the women in the intervention group performed regular BSE compared to 10.2% of women in the control group. The mean knowledge score related to breast cancer and BSE was significantly higher for the women in the intervention group than that in the control group.