Determinants of Quality Of Life among Women Living With Cervical Cancer in the Accra Metropolis

Abstract

Cervical cancer is an abnormal growth or tumour of the cervix, often predisposed by Human Papilloma Virus (HPV) and other factors. Cervical cancer is the third most frequent cancer among women globally with about 527,624 cases diagnosed and 265,672 mortalities annually. It is the leading cause of cancer death among women in Ghana. Women living with cervical cancer are affected psychologically, physically, socially, sexually, spiritually and in many forms, after they are diagnosed with the disease. Coping with their spouses, partners, families, friends and continuous integration into the community in which they live become a major task. This study investigated into the determinants of quality of life among women diagnosed with cervical cancer in Ghana. A quantitative approach using a cross-sectional design was used for the study. A total sample size of 176 participants who met the inclusion criteria were recruited for the study. The statistical package for social science (SPSS) version 20.0 was utilised for the data analysis, and descriptive statistics, multiple linear regressions and Pearson’s correlation were computed. The results revealed that, the overall quality of life of the women was moderate (Mean= 3.54, SD=0.70) and symptom status was high (Mean=3.21, SD=0.61), daily functional activities was good (Mean=3.41, SD=0.51) but with high general health perceptions of the women about their illness (Mean= 2.81 SD=0.64). Finally, only environmental characteristics (p=0.008) and age (p=0.028) from the individual characteristics were significant in predicting the overall quality of life of women living with cervical cancer. These findings have implications for nursing and midwifery practice on clinical care, for policy formulation for a substantive policy on cancer treatment and funding for cervical cancer as well as for future research on the socioeconomic status and treatment modalities of these women.