An interventional study to improve colorectal cancer screening knowledge and health perceptions among Jordanians' average risk population

Context: Globally, Colorectal Cancer (CRC) is the second most commonly occurring cancer in women and the third most commonly occurring cancer in men. Aims: This study was conducted to investigate the current levels of Jordanians' CRC knowledge and health perceptions; and to test the effects of a health education intervention on them. Settings and Design: A descriptive quasi-experimental design was used to recruit a convenience sample of 197 Jordanian adult participants from two governmental hospitals in Amman. Methods and Material: A rolling enrolment strategy was used to randomly assign participants into intervention (n=98) and control (n=99) groups. An education intervention included a 1-hour Power Point presentation about CRC. Results: The mean knowledge scores were (6.51±1.60) and (6.91± 1.83) for females and males, respectively. The mean of the knowledge level in the intervention group subsequent to the intervention was significantly higher than that for the control group. More than half of the study participants (53.8%) did not believe they were susceptible to CRC, while about one third (37.4%) of the participants believed that CRC is a severe disease. 42.2% of study participants believed there were barriers preventing them from participating in CRC screening. The most frequently perceived barrier among them was the cost of screening tests. The means of the perceived susceptibility and severity subscales of the intervention group was significantly higher than that of the control group. Conclusion: Correcting the knowledge gap and improper health perceptions toward CRC could play an important role in facilitating early detection as a primary prevention measure. Findings may enhance health strategies to better address the needs of the average-risk population.