Assessing the Knowledge of Female Tertiary Institution Students in Ile Ife, Nigeria on Human Papillomavirus and Cervical Cancer

Background: Cervical cancer is a serious health problem which can either be prevented or treated when detected early. Cervical cancer is the second most common cancer in Nigerian women, coming after breast cancer. Cervical cancer is linked to persistent Human Papilloma virus (HPV) infection. The virus is usually transmitted during sexual intercourse. Objective: The aim of this study was to determine the awareness of female students on the HPV and cervical cancer. Method: a cross-sectional study was conducted among 230 female undergraduates of Obafemi Awolowo University (OAU), Ile Ife, Nigeria. Multistage sampling technique was used to select the six departments where the questionnaires were administered. Descriptive statistics and chi square test was use for analysis. Results: out of 230 female students.45.65% were between the ages of 21 and 25 years while 2.6% were above 25 years old,85.2% were aware of the two cancer (breast and cervical) that accounts for the highest number of deaths in Nigeria. More than half (56.9%) of the participants had a low knowledge of HPV and cervical cancer, Age and course of study of students did not influence knowledge of HPV and cervical cancer as they did not reach significant levels. The p-values were 0.14 and 0.85 respectively. Conclusion: Knowledge of HPV which is primarily responsible for cervical cancer was low among the students.