Abstract:

Background: Breast is the most common cancer diagnosed in women, accounting for more than 1 in 10 new cancer diagnoses each year. It is the second most common cause of death from cancer among women in the world. Most of the patients discover their disease during their routine screening while others may present with an accidentally discovered breast lump, change of breast shape or size, or nipple. Survival rates improve with early diagnosis. The disease has a multi-factor aetiology and is one of the most widely studied tumours in terms of its determinants, meaning an understanding on the risk factors would help in identifying the disease earlier plus involvement of some modifiable risk factors to prevent the disease at some chances.

Problem statement: The incidence of breast cancer is steadily growing due to increased life expectancy, increased urbanization, and adoption of Western lifestyles, and breast cancer is the second most common cancer and the second most common cause of cancer death among Tanzanian women. Little KAP studies on Breast Cancer Risk Factors have been reported in Tanzania except for a few limited-scale studies. Thus, this study will have a contribution on the expansion of knowledge on breast cancer in Tanzania.

Methodology: The study was conducted as a cross-sectional research design. Cross sectional research design is a type of observational study that analyzes data from a population, or a representative sample, at a specific point in time. And SPSS was used for Data analysis The design is appropriate for analyzing the data from the population of women of Lake Zone Attending clinics at Bugando who will represent the population of all other women in country.