Abstract
INTRODUCTION: Cervical cancer is a major killer disease particularly among young women in developing countries like India. Despite being a largely preventable disease and the efforts taken by the government to control the burden, it is not effective due to various reasons. In this study, we will assess the awareness among parents of daughters towards human papillomavirus (HPV) and its prophylactic vaccination in the peripheral care centres of a teaching institution. OBJECTIVES: To assess the awareness among parents of daughters towards HPV and vaccines visiting the peripheral care centres of a teaching institution. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study was done among parents of daughters attending peripheral centres of a teaching medical institution. The parents were assured confidentiality and assessed for their knowledge towards HPV infection and its vaccine through the Human Papillomavirus Knowledge (HPV-KQ) questionnaire followed by general health check-up. RESULTS: A total of 247 parents or caregivers volunteered for the study. The mean age of the participants was 37.5 ± SD of 8.4 years. The proportion of participants having good knowledge of HPV is less and needs to be improved. Furthermore, the association of sex, education, residence, and socioeconomic status towards poor knowledge was analysed (P value < 0.05). CONCLUSION: HPV vaccination forms the primary and effective prevention of cervical cancer in India. By coordinate effects of vaccination along with cervical cancer screening, the prevalence rate of cervical cancer can be controlled to an extent to eliminate cervical cancer as a public health problem by the year 2030.