Background
Materials and methods
Study design and population
Sampling size calculation
Sampling methods
Questionnaire and data collection
Statistical analysis
Results
Participant characteristics
Characteristic | Total (n= 5411) | Gaza Strip (n= 2278) | WBJ (n= 3133) | p-value |
---|---|---|---|---|
Age, median [IQR] | 32.0 [24.0,44.0] | 30.0 [24.0,40.0] | 34.0 [25.0,46.0] | <0.001 |
Age group, n (%) | ||||
18 to 44 | 4151 (76.7) | 1872 (82.2) | 2279 (72.7) | <0.001 |
45 or older | 1260 (23.3) | 406 (17.8) | 854 (27.3) | |
Menarche, n (%) | ||||
Early (≤ 10 years) | 65 (1.2) | 20 (0.9) | 45 (1.4) | <0.001 |
Normal (11-15 years) | 4658 (86.1) | 1923 (84.4) | 2735 (87.3) | |
Late (≥ 16 years) | 688 (12.7) | 335 (14.7) | 353 (11.3) | |
Educational level, n (%) | ||||
Secondary or below | 3016 (55.7) | 1330 (58.4) | 1686 (53.8) | <0.001 |
Post-secondary | 2395 (44.3) | 948 (41.6) | 1447 (46.2) | |
Occupation, n (%) | ||||
Unemployed/housewife | 3671 (67.8) | 1837 (80.6) | 1834 (58.5) | <0.001 |
Employed | 1095 (20.2) | 254 (11.2) | 841 (26.8) | |
Retired | 47 (0.9) | 9 (0.4) | 38 (1.2) | |
Student | 598 (11.1) | 178 (7.8) | 420 (13.4) | |
Monthly income ≥ 1450 NIS, n (%) | 3330 (61.5) | 474 (20.8) | 2856 (91.2) | <0.001 |
Marital status, n (%) | ||||
Single | 1248 (23.1) | 374 (16.4) | 874 (27.9) | <0.001 |
Married | 3952 (73.0) | 1836 (80.6) | 2116 (67.5) | |
Divorced/Widowed | 211 (3.9) | 68 (3.0) | 143 (4.6) | |
Having a chronic disease, n (%) | 1097 (20.3) | 350 (15.4) | 747 (23.8) | <0.001 |
Knowing someone with cancer, n (%) | 2746 (50.8) | 1104 (48.5) | 1642 (52.4) | 0.004 |
Site of data collection, n (%) | ||||
Public Spaces | 1645 (30.4) | 596 (26.2) | 1049 (33.5) | <0.001 |
Hospitals | 1735 (32.1) | 650 (28.5) | 1085 (34.6) | |
Primary healthcare centers | 2031 (37.5) | 1032 (45.3) | 999 (31.9) |
Recognition of OC causation myths to be incorrect
Myth | Total (n= 5411) n (%) | Gaza Strip (n= 2278) n (%) | WBJ (n= 3133) n (%) | p–value |
---|---|---|---|---|
Food-related | ||||
Drinking from plastic bottles | 1370 (25.3) | 592 (26.0) | 778 (24.8) | 0.33 |
Eating burnt food (e.g., bread or barbeque) | 1298 (24.0) | 390 (17.1) | 908 (29.0) | <0.001 |
Eating food containing artificial sweeteners (e.g., saccharine) | 1013 (18.7) | 429 (18.8) | 584 (18.6) | 0.86 |
Using microwave ovens | 958 (17.7) | 369 (16.2) | 589 (18.8) | 0.013 |
Eating genetically modified food (e.g., hybrid vegetables) | 689 (12.7) | 312 (13.7) | 377 (12.0) | 0.07 |
Eating food containing additives | 611 (11.3) | 240 (10.5) | 371 (11.8) | 0.13 |
Others | ||||
Having a physical trauma | 2899 (53.6) | 1306 (57.3) | 1593 (50.8) | <0.001 |
Using aerosol containers | 2127 (39.3) | 822 (36.1) | 1305 (41.7) | <0.001 |
Using cleaning products | 1758 (32.5) | 752 (33.0) | 1006 (32.1) | 0.48 |
Feeling stressed | 1562 (28.9) | 668 (29.3) | 894 (28.5) | 0.53 |
Living near power lines | 1386 (25.6) | 742 (32.6) | 644 (20.6) | <0.001 |
Exposure to electromagnetic frequencies (e.g., Wi-Fi and Radio/TV frequencies) | 1365 (25.2) | 585 (25.7) | 780 (24.9) | 0.51 |
Using mobile phones | 1347 (24.9) | 503 (22.1) | 844 (26.9) | <0.001 |
Good awareness of myths around OC causation and its associated factors
Level | Total n (%) | Gaza Strip n (%) | WBJ n (%) | p–value |
---|---|---|---|---|
Poor (0–4 myths) | 3783 (69.9) | 1594 (70.0) | 2189 (69.9) | 0.46 |
Fair (5–9 myths) | 1355 (25.0) | 560 (24.6) | 795 (25.4) | |
Good (10–13 myths) | 273 (5.1) | 124 (5.4) | 149 (4.7) |
Characteristic | Good recognition | |||
---|---|---|---|---|
Crude OR (95% CI) | p-value | AOR (95% CI)* | p-value | |
Age group | ||||
18 to 44 | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
45 or older | 0.67 (0.49- 0.93) | 0.015 | 0.98 (0.67- 1.41) | 0.89 |
Educational level | ||||
Secondary or below | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
Post-secondary | 1.15 (0.90- 1.47) | 0.25 | 1.09 (0.82- 1.43) | 0.56 |
Occupation | ||||
Housewife | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
Employed | 0.91 (0.66- 1.27) | 0.59 | 0.83 (0.57- 1.22) | 0.35 |
Retired | 0.44 (0.06- 3.23) | 0.42 | 0.53 (0.07- 4.02) | 0.54 |
Student | 1.98 (1.44- 2.73) | <0.001 | 1.30 (0.84- 1.99) | 0.24 |
Monthly income | ||||
< 1450 NIS | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
≥ 1450 NIS | 0.73 (0.57- 0.93) | 0.011 | 0.54 (0.37- 0.79) | 0.001 |
Marital status | ||||
Single | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
Married | 0.56 (0.43- 0.73) | <0.001 | 0.71 (0.50- 1.01) | 0.06 |
Divorced/Widowed | 0.36 (0.16- 0.83) | 0.017 | 0.45 (0.19- 1.09) | 0.08 |
Residency | ||||
Gaza Strip | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
WBJ | 0.87 (0.68- 1.11) | 0.25 | 1.31 (0.89- 1.91) | 0.17 |
Having a chronic disease | ||||
No | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
Yes | 0.56 (0.39- 0.81) | 0.002 | 0.68 (0.45- 1.01) | 0.06 |
Knowing someone with cancer | ||||
No | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
Yes | 1.02 (0.80- 1.30) | 0.86 | 1.03 (0.80- 1.32) | 0.81 |
Site of data collection | ||||
Public Spaces | Ref | Ref | Ref | Ref |
Hospitals | 0.56 (0.41- 0.76) | <0.001 | 0.65 (0.47- 0.90) | 0.009 |
Primary healthcare centers | 0.64 (0.48- 0.85) | 0.002 | 0.69 (0.51- 0.94) | 0.018 |