Knowledge and Barriers toward Breast Self-Examination and Awareness of Breast Cancer among Women in Puncak Alam

Background: Breast cancer is the leading cause of cancer-related death among Malaysian women. However, there is still a lack of breast cancer awareness among women. The study aims to identify knowledge gaps and barriers to breast self-examination (BSE) and breast cancer awareness. Methods: This cross-sectional study was conducted among women in Puncak Alam, Malaysia, using a convenience sampling method. 395 participants, aged between 18 and 60, answered the questionnaire about knowledge of BSE, barriers toward BSE, and breast cancer awareness. The obtained data were analyzed using SPSS version 25. Results: Most participants, 51.6% (n=204) had good knowledge of BSE and a low barrier to breast self-examination (60.8%, (240). The main barrier to BSE is scared diagnoses with breast cancer 90.1% (n=356). The overall breast cancer awareness is poor, 74.2% (n=293). There were statistically significant differences between age p< 0.001 and family income p=0.01 with knowledge of BSE. As for the association between barriers toward BSE with demographic characteristics, there was a statistically significant difference between marital status X2(2) = 7.54, p =0.02 and family history of breast cancer X2(1) = 5.86, p =0.02. Furthermore, there were statistically significant differences between awareness and marital status (2) = 7.10, p =0.03. Conclusion: The study reveals that women knew about BSE and had low barriers toward BSE, but lacked awareness about breast cancer. Breast cancer awareness is critical because early detection of breast cancer makes it treatable. More awareness campaigns are suggested, and nurses should proactively promote breast cancer awareness to close the BSE gap.