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
. 2024 Oct 7;19(10):e0311491.
doi: 10.1371/journal.pone.0311491. eCollection 2024.

Public awareness of gastric cancer risk factors and screening behaviours in Shijiazhuang, China: A community-based survey

Qian Wang  1 , Xiao-Ci He  1 , Lian-Xia Geng  2 , Shu-Lin Jiang  3 , Chuan-Jie Yang  3 , Kai-Yue Xu  4 , Shu-Fang Shen  5 , Wen-Wen Cao  6 , Wei Qi  3 , Shu-Ping Zhao  3
Affiliations

Public awareness of gastric cancer risk factors and screening behaviours in Shijiazhuang, China: A community-based survey

Qian Wang et al. PLoS One. .

Abstract

Background: Reducing exposure to risk factors and screening represent 2 major approaches to gastric cancer (GC) prevention, but public knowledge GC risk factors and screening behaviour remain unknown. We aimed to investigate public awareness of GC risk factors, adherence to screening, and barriers hindering screening practices in China.

Methods: This community-based household survey was conducted within Shijiazhuang, China, and 1490 residents were recruited through a multistage stratified cluster random sampling approach. A self-administered questionnaire was completed which consisted of three sections: demographics, awareness of GC risk factors, and personal screening behaviours. Factors associated with knowledge of risk factors and screening behaviours were evaluated using binary logistic regression analysis.

Results: The mean risk factor awareness score of 12 (7, 15) revealed insufficient knowledge in 51.1% of participants. Dietary lifestyle factors were better understood than physical activity and weight-related factors. Marital status (OR 1.967; 95% CI 1.415 to 2.734), higher income (OR 1.197; 95% CI 1.010 to 1.418), and a history of upper gastrointestinal problems (OR 0.048; 95% CI 1.002 to 1.311) were associated with higher awareness. Merely 21.5% underwent GC screening, with higher rates linked to older age (OR 1.642; 95% CI 1.418 to 1.902), higher education (OR 1.398; 95% CI 1.176 to 1.662), a history of upper gastrointestinal problems (OR 3.842; 95% CI 2.833 to 5.209), and moderate (OR 2.077; 95% CI 1.352 to 3.191) and high (OR 2.529; 95% CI 1.311 to 4.878) perceived GC risk. Notably, participants commonly refused gastroscopy due to the absence of symptoms or signs.

Conclusions: In Shijiazhuang, more than half of participants demonstrated inadequate knowledge of GC risk factors, and screening participation rates were remarkably low. This emphasizes the need for targeted interventions to enhance GC awareness and significantly improve screening rates.

PubMed Disclaimer

Conflict of interest statement

The authors have declared that no competing interest exsist.

Figures

Fig 1
Fig 1. Proportion of participants who agreed or strongly agreed that a given risk factor increased a person’s chance of developing gastric cancer.
Fig 2
Fig 2. Perceived barriers towards gastric cancer screening.
See this image and copyright information in PMC

Similar articles

See all similar articles

Cited by

References

    1. Sung H, Ferlay J, Siegel RL, Laversanne M, Soerjomataram I, Jemal A, et al.. Global cancer statistics 2020: GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. Ca-a Cancer Journal for Clinicians. 2021;71(3):209–49. doi: 10.3322/caac.21660 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Smyth EC, Nilsson M, Grabsch HI, van Grieken NCT, Lordick F. Gastric cancer. Lancet. 2020;396(10251):635–48. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)31288-5 - DOI - PubMed
    1. Abbafati C, Abbas KM, Abbasi M, Abbasifard M, Abbasi-Kangevari M, Abbastabar H, et al.. Global burden of 369 diseases and injuries in 204 countries and territories, 1990–2019: a systematic analysis for the Global Burden of Disease Study 2019. Lancet. 2020;396(10258):1204–22. doi: 10.1016/S0140-6736(20)30925-9 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Fan X, Qin X, Zhang Y, Li Z, Zhou T, Zhang J, et al.. Screening for gastric cancer in China: Advances, challenges and visions. Chinese Journal of Cancer Research. 2021;33(2):168–80. doi: 10.21147/j.issn.1000-9604.2021.02.05 - DOI - PMC - PubMed
    1. Wu Y, Li Y, Giovannucci E. Potential Impact of Time Trend of Lifestyle Risk Factors on Burden of Major Gastrointestinal Cancers in China. Gastroenterology. 2021;161(6):1830–41.e8. doi: 10.1053/j.gastro.2021.08.006 - DOI - PubMed