Background and Aims: Gastric Cancer (GC) is considered the fifth most prevalent cancer worldwide. The awareness of GC symptoms may lead to early diagnosis. Thus, this study aimed to assess the level of knowledge regarding risk factors, warning symptoms, and the screening attitude of GC.
Methods: Data for this descriptive cross-sectional study were collected from the general population in Makkah via an electronic self-administered questionnaire. The collected data were analyzed by using SPSS software.
Results: A total of 400 participants were enrolled in the study. Wherein 296 (74%) were females, and 104 (26%) were males. Of the 400 participants, 78 (19.5%), 263 (65.8%), and 59 (14.7%) had respectively low, moderate, and high levels of knowledge about the risk factors and warning symptoms of GC. The most highly recognized risk factors were family history of gastric cancer (83.8%), followed by alcohol drinking (81.8%), and smoking (80%). The most highly recognized warning symptoms were gastrointestinal bleeding (77%), followed by re- current nausea and vomiting (74%) and abdominal lump (73.5%). Regarding their perception of the screening of GC, most of the participants thought that GC could be prevented (94.8%). Interestingly, only 11 participants underwent screening of GC (2.8%) among all participants.
Conclusions: Good levels of knowledge about the risk factors and warning symptoms of GC were recorded to be moderate in most of the population in Makkah. However, the awareness about the importance of early screening of GC to prevent the possibility of disease occurrence is still a challenge for public health awareness.
Key words: Gastric cancer, Awareness, Public knowledge, General population, Saudi Arabia
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