Population Council Projects | National Survey of Mexican Physicians' Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Human Papillomavirus

PROJECT
National Survey of Mexican Physicians' Knowledge, Attitudes, and Practices Regarding Human Papillomavirus

In Mexico cervical cancer remains a leading cause of death: The country has had a stable mortality rate of 17/100,000 due to cervical cancer despite the existence of a national screening program since 1974. Clinical evidence has established human papillomavirus (HPV) as a principal cause of cervical cancer.

To better understand physicians’ knowledge, attitudes, and practices regarding HPV, Population Council researchers surveyed 1,206 general practitioners (GPs) and obstetricians/gynecologists (OB/GYNs) working in a nationally representative sample of public and private facilities in urban Mexico.

Although national guidelines do not recommend hysterectomy in cases of mild or moderate dysplasia (CIN I or II), 43 percent of OB/GYNs had performed a hysterectomy within the last year to treat such cases. While 80 percent of respondents identified HPV as the principal cause of cervical cancer, many lacked detailed knowledge about this association. OB/GYNs were significantly more likely than GPs to have heard about specific oncogenic strains of HPV. Nearly all respondents thought that women should be informed that HPV causes cervical cancer; nevertheless, physicians believed that positioning cervical cancer as a sexually transmitted infection (STI) could cause problems in partner relationships (60 percent), confusion (40 percent), and unnecessary anxiety among women (32 percent). Mexican physicians support patient education on the HPV–cervical cancer link; however, findings suggest the need to present clear messages to women (emphasizing, for example, that only certain types of HPV are oncogenic), to consider the conflicts such information might create for couples, and to further educate physicians about overall cervical cancer screening and treatment protocols.

Location

Mexico

Duration

2002–2005

Population Council researchers

Sandra Garcia, Diana Lara

Non-Council collaborators

Tess Aldrich (Yale School of Nursing)

Davida Becker (Department of Population and Family Health, Johns Hopkins Bloomberg School of Public Health)

Donor

The William and Flora Hewlett Foundation

Publications/Resources
Council researchers' names appear in boldface type.

2005
Aldrich, Tess, Davida Becker, Sandra G. Garcia, and Diana Lara. "Mexican physicians’ knowledge and attitudes about the human papillomavirus and cervical cancer: A national survey," Sexually Transmitted Infections 81(2): 135–141. (abstract)