A Cross-Sectional Study on the Knowledge and Awareness of Lung Cancer and Screening in Jazan Region, Saudi Arabia

Figures & data

Table 1 Socio-Demographic Profile of the Participants (n = 671)

Variables	N	%
Age
18–35 years	493	73.50
36–45 years	101	15.10
46–60 years	66	9.80
61 years and older	11	1.60
Gender
Male	258	38.50
Female	413	61.50
Nationality
Saudi	653	97.30
Non-Saudi	18	2.70
Marital Status
Single	427	63.60
Married	229	34.10
Divorced	12	1.80
Widowed	3	0.40
Place of residency
City	393	58.60
Rural area	278	41.40
Educational level
Uneducated	206	30.70
High school, diploma or lower	436	65.00
Bachelor’s degree	29	4.30
Occupation
Teacher	108	16.10
Employee in the health sector	28	4.20
Military	10	1.50
Civil employee	21	3.10
Student in health colleges	273	40.70
Student in a field other than health colleges	75	11.20
Retired from a job in the educational sector	23	3.40
Retired from a job other than health and education	14	2.10
Others	119	17.70
Monthly income
Less than 5000 SR	375	55.90
From 5000–10,000 SR	118	17.60
From 10,000 to 15,000 SR	84	12.50
From 15,000 to 20,000 SR	58	8.60
From 20,000 to 30,000 SR	14	2.10
More than 30,000 SR	22	3.30

Table 2 Smoking Profile of Participants (n = 671)

Question	N	%
Are you a smoker?
Yes	66	9.8
No	582	86.7
Previously	23	3.4
If you are a smoker, do you plan to quit? (n = 66)
Yes	44	66.7
No	8	12.1
I do not know	14	21.2
Is any of your family members of friends a smoker?
Yes	473	70.5
No	179	26.7
I do not know	19	2.8
If you have a family member or a friend who is a smoker, did you advise them to quit? (n = 473)
Yes	408	86.30
No	65	13.70

Table 3 Participants Knowledge Assessment Toward Lung Cancer (n = 638)

Question	N	%
Did you know that lung cancer is one of the most common cancers?
No	113	17.7
Yes (correct answer)	425	66.6
I do not know	100	15.7
Did you know that lung cancer is one of the most common causes of death?
No	87	13.6
Yes (correct answer)	478	74.9
I do not know	73	11.4
Do you think exercise reduces lung cancer?
No (correct answer)	98	15.4
Yes	378	59.2
I do not know	162	25.4
Do you think lung cancer is a genetic disease?
No	375	58.8
Yes (correct answer)	106	16.6
I do not know	157	24.6
Do you think that COPD is associated with lung cancer?
No	133	20.8
Yes (correct answer)	263	41.2
I do not know	242	37.9
Is smoking a risk factor for lung cancer?
No	3	0.5
Yes (correct answer)	623	97.6
I do not know	12	1.9
Is shisha a risk factor for lung cancer?
No	8	1.3
Yes (correct answer)	597	93.6
I do not know	33	5.2
Do you think that smoking e-cigarette is a risk factor for lung cancer?
No	15	2.4
Yes (correct answer)	550	86.2
I do not know	73	11.4
Do you think air pollution is a risk factor for lung cancer?
No	62	9.7
Yes (correct answer)	464	72.7
I do not know	112	17.6
Do you think passive smoking (indirect) is a risk factor for lung cancer?
No	52	8.2
Yes (correct answer)	471	73.8
I do not know	115	18
Do you think spicy food and fried food are associated with lung cancer?
No (correct answer)	357	56
Yes	50	7.8
I do not know	231	36.2
Do you think alcohol consumption is a risk factor for lung cancer?
No (correct answer)	107	15.9
Yes	335	52.5
I do not know	196	29.2
Do you think asbestos is a risk factor for lung cancer?
No	32	5
Yes (correct answer)	249	39
I do not know	357	56
The following symptoms may or may not be considered a risk of lung cancer. To what extent do you agree that each of them can increase a person’s chance of developing lung cancer? (more than one answer can be chosen) (all answers are correct)
Shortness of breath	484	75.86
Cough with blood	481	75.39
Persistent chest pain	460	72.10
Cough does not go away	447	70.06
Pain when breathing	415	65.05
Painful cough	397	62.23
Persistent chest infection	373	58.46
High-pitched sound when breathing	316	49.53
Fatigue and constant tiredness	294	46.08
Changes in the characteristics of the previous cough	281	44.04
Unexplained weight loss	231	36.21
Loss of appetite	182	28.53
Changes in the shape of the finger (nail)	106	16.61
Persistent shoulder pain	99	15.52
Knowledge Score (lowest possible score = 0, highest possible score = 27)
Minimum	2
Maximum	25
Mean	14.66
Standard deviation	4.45

Figure 1 Participants Knowledge Levels Toward Lung Cancer.

Table 4 Lung Cancer Screening Profile (n = 638)

Question	N	%
Do you think that early detection of lung cancer will contribute to saving people from death or advanced lung cancer?
Yes	612	95.9
No	11	1.7
I do not know	15	2.4
Did you know that there are screenings for early detection of lung cancer?
Yes	405	63.5
No	121	19
I do not know	112	17.6
If your previous answer is “yes”, Do you think there is a benefit from doing these tests?
Yes	396	97.8
No	4	1
I do not know	5	1.2
If you have a risk factor for lung cancer, would you like to proceed to do the test, to ensure your safety from lung cancer?
Yes	503	78.80
No	72	11.30
I do not know	63	9.9

Table 5 Factors Associated with Knowledge Toward Lung Cancer

Factor	Knowledge Score		P-value
	Mean	Standard Deviation
Age			< 0.001*
18–35 years	15.3	4.31
36–45 years	13.21	3.84
46–60 years	12.81	4.93
61 years and older	9.9	4.28
Gender			0.631
Male	14.77	4.45
Female	14.59	4.45
Nationality			0.793
Saudi	14.65	4.43
Non-Saudi	14.94	5.32
Marital Status			< 0.001*
Single	15.46	4.27
Married	13.28	4.51
Divorced	13.00	3.28
Widowed	13.33	2.52
Place of residency			0.091
City	14.41	4.50
Rural area	15.02	4.37
Educational level			0.170
Uneducated	15.12	4.31
High school, diploma or lower	14.50	4.50
Bachelor’s degree	13.86	4.50
Occupation			< 0.001*
Teacher	13.31	4.55
Employee in the health sector	15.32	4.92
Military	12.33	4.15
Civil employee	13.21	4.06
Student in health colleges	16.26	4.11
Student in a field other than health colleges	14.01	4.47
Retired from a job in the educational sector	12.39	4.50
Retired from a job other than health and education	12.93	4.67
Monthly income			0.140
Less than 5000 SR	15.02	4.21
From 5000–10,000 SR	14.23	5.12
From 10,000 to 15,000 SR	13.84	4.21
From 15,000 to 20,000 SR	14.24	4.47
From 20,000 to 30,000 SR	13.62	5.44
More than 30,000 SR	15.60	4.63
Are you a smoker?			0.578
Yes	14.88	4.70
No	14.67	4.39
Previously	13.71	5.45
If you are a smoker, do you plan to quit?			0.530
Yes	15.32	4.67
No	15.00	4.97
Previously	13.64	4.78
Is any of your family members of friends a smoker?			0.227
Yes	14.79	4.43
No	14.47	4.43
Previously	12.86	5.14
If you have a family member or a friend who is a smoker, did you advise them to quit?			0.804
Yes	14.77	4.44
No	14.92	4.41

Note: *Significant at level 0.05.