Skip to main page content
U.S. flag

An official website of the United States government

Dot gov

The .gov means it’s official.
Federal government websites often end in .gov or .mil. Before sharing sensitive information, make sure you’re on a federal government site.

Https

The site is secure.
The https:// ensures that you are connecting to the official website and that any information you provide is encrypted and transmitted securely.

Access keys NCBI Homepage MyNCBI Homepage Main Content Main Navigation
. 2015 Aug 29:8:384.
doi: 10.1186/s13104-015-1351-1.

Preventing hepatocellular carcinoma in Egypt: results of a Pilot Health Education Intervention Study

Doa'a A Saleh  1 , Sania Amr  2 , Irene A Jillson  3 , Judy Huei-yu Wang  4 , Nancy Crowell  5 , Christopher A Loffredo  6
Affiliations

Preventing hepatocellular carcinoma in Egypt: results of a Pilot Health Education Intervention Study

Doa'a A Saleh et al. BMC Res Notes. .

Abstract

Background: Hepatocellular carcinoma (HCC), one of the most fatal malignancies, is particularly prevalent in Egypt, where we previously found deficiencies in knowledge concerning HCC and its risk factors. Hepatitis B and C viral infections are highly prevalent in Egypt, pesticides are very commonly used, and diets are often contaminated by aflatoxin, especially in rural areas.

Methods: We conducted a study to pilot test a health education intervention addressing HCC, its risk factors, and its main modes of prevention. It included four health education modules: HCC, hepatitis viruses, pesticides and aflatoxin. We used a pre- and post-intervention set of questionnaires to assess knowledge gained by the participants.

Results: A total of 25 participants from a village in the Nile Delta area attended the health education session and completed the questionnaires. The education intervention significantly increased the participants' knowledge on HCC and its risk factors, particularly regarding the use of pesticides at home and aflatoxin contaminated foods (both p < 0.05). Overall, there was a 12% increase in the number of participants who believed that HCC could be prevented, and they reported their intention to practice prevention for HCC risk factors.

Conclusions: We found that the education intervention we pilot tested was feasible and proved effective in increasing participants' knowledge. Future efforts should focus on implementing targeted education programs in high-risk populations in Egypt.

PubMed Disclaimer

References

    1. Schutte K, Bornschein J, Malfertheiner P. Hepatocellular carcinoma–epidemiological trends and risk factors. Dig Dis Sci. 2009;27:80–92. - PubMed
    1. Beasley RP, Hwang LY, Lin CC, Chien CS. Hepatocellular carcinoma and hepatitis B virus. A prospective study of 22 707 men in Taiwan. Lancet. 1981;2:1129–1133. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(81)90585-7. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Liang TJ, Jeffers LJ, Reddy KR, De Medina M, Parker IT, Cheinquer H, Idrovo V, Rabassa A, Schiff ER. Viral pathogenesis of hepatocellular carcinoma in the United States. Hepatology. 1993;18:1326–1333. - PubMed
    1. Chang MH, You SL, Chen CJ, Liu CJ, Lee CM, Lin SM, Chu HC, Wu TC, Yang SS, Kuo HS, Chen DS. Taiwan Hepatoma Study Group: decreased incidence of hepatocellular carcinoma in hepatitis B vaccines: a 20-year follow-up study. J Natl Cancer Inst. 2009;101:1348–1355. doi: 10.1093/jnci/djp288. - DOI - PubMed
    1. Saleh DA, Shebl FM, El-Kamary SS, Magder LS, Allam A, Abdel-Hamid M, Mikhail N, Hashem M, Sharaf S, Stoszek SK, Strickland GT. Incidence and risk factors for community-acquired hepatitis C infection from birth to 5 years of age in rural Egyptian children. Trans R Soc Trop Med Hyg. 2010;104:357–363. doi: 10.1016/j.trstmh.2010.01.009. - DOI - PMC - PubMed

Publication types