Improving Prostate Cancer Screening Knowledge, Attitudes, and Uptake among Male College Students through a Structured, Theory-Driven Disease Education Intervention

Olaitan Balogun

doi:10.29062/engagement.v10i3.2358

Olaitan Balogun Physiotherapy Division, Department Health and Rehabilitation Sciences, Faculty of Medicine and Health Science, Stellenbosch University, Cape Town, South Africa

DOI: https://doi.org/10.29062/engagement.v10i3.2358

Keywords: Prostate Cancer, Disease Education, Screening Uptake, Locus Of Control, Nigeria, Health Belief Model

Abstract

Background: Prostate cancer is the leading male cancer in Nigeria, responsible for an estimated 5,098 deaths annually, yet screening uptake remains critically low, particularly among young men. Structured disease education is a promising but underexplored strategy to close this gap in sub-Saharan Africa.

Purpose of the Study: This study evaluated the effects of a theory-grounded, eight-week disease education intervention on prostate cancer screening knowledge, attitudes, and uptake among male College of Education students in Oyo State, Nigeria.

Methods: A quasi-experimental, pretest–posttest control group design with a 2×2×2 factorial matrix was employed. Two hundred male students were recruited from government-owned Colleges of Education using a multi-stage sampling technique. Participants were randomly assigned to an experimental group (prostate cancer education, eight weekly 2-hour sessions) or a control group (personal hygiene education). Instruments included the self-developed Knowledge of Prostate Cancer Screening Questionnaire (KPCSQ; α = 0.78), Attitude Towards Prostate Cancer Screening Questionnaire (APCSQ; α = 0.81), Uptake of Prostate Cancer Screening Questionnaire (UPCSQ; α = 0.77), and the standardised Multidimensional Health Locus of Control scale. Data were analysed using Multivariate Analysis of Covariance (MANCOVA) at the 0.05 significance level.

Results: The prostate cancer education programme significantly improved participants' knowledge, attitudes, and uptake of prostate cancer screening compared with the control group, with large effect sizes (partial η² ranging from 0.30 to 0.65). Religion had no significant main effect on any outcome. Locus of control showed a significant main effect on uptake only, with participants of external locus of control demonstrating higher uptake. None of the interaction effects were statistically significant.

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