| dc.description.abstract | The Pink October Campaign is a global month-long event that is held annually to create
awareness about Breast Cancer (B.C) signs and symptoms, treatability and preventive
measures.B.C is the leading and most common type of Cancer affecting people of all ages
and is most prevalent among women while affecting 1% of men globally.In addition,
western countries such as the United States of America have a survival rate of 86% within
the first 5 years due to early diagnosis stemming from awareness creation efforts while
Sub-Saharan Africa has a survival rate of 40% due to late diagnosis. In Kenya, B.C is the
most prevalent type of cancer accounting for 23% of all new cancer cases with 70% of
these cases diagnosed in the later stages 3 and 4 when it is most difficult to treat leading to
a high mortality rate of 45%.The World Health Organisation (WHO) recommends
awareness creation through campaigns such as the Pink October and regular B.C screening
as the primary preventive measures. This study investigated the extent to which the Pink
October campaign influences breast health seeking behaviour among students of Masinde
Muliro University of Science and Technology (MMUST) in Kakamega County, Kenya.
This study sought to examine the knowledge levels among MMUST students regarding
B.C symptoms, treatability and prevention, establish the communication channels used
during the Pink October campaign that were encountered by MMUST Students and to
determine the effectiveness of the Pink October campaign in influencing MMUST students
to undergo voluntary screening for B.C. The study was underpinned by the Elaboration
Likelihood Model theory (ELM) and the Health Belief Model (HBM). It employed the
explanatory sequential research design that is both quantitative and qualitative. Data
collection tools included Questionnaires that were administered to a representative sample
of 400 students selected through Multi-stage cluster sampling and Proportionate stratified
sampling from the target population of university students from Masinde Muliro
University of Science and Technology (MMUST). Two Focus Group Discussions (FGDs)
of 8 students per group selected through purposive sampling were also conducted.
Secondary data was collected from relevant literature in journal publications, Pamphlets,
Textbooks and the Internet. Quantitative data was analysed using descriptive statistics and
was presented as frequencies, percentages and discussions while qualitative data was
analysed through transcribing the responses from the FGDs, grouping them into themes
and presenting them based on patterns and contrasts that emerged. Findings were presented
in form of tables, charts and discussions.The study established that 89.5% of the 400
respondents and all sixteen FGD participants had heard about B.C while 3.5% had not been
exposed to any B.C awareness messages. At least 7 % of the 400 respondents were
convinced to undergo voluntary screening for B.C by the Pink October Campaign. These
findings will be utilized by the Ministry of Health to improve the outcomes of the
awareness strategies in use by focusing on the significance of B.C screening as a primary
preventive measure. | en_US |
