Breast Cancer, Breast Cancer Screening
Conditions
Brief summary
Breast cancer is the most common cancer among women worldwide. This randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the effect of an Instagram- and podcast-based intervention on women's breast cancer awareness, health beliefs, and breast cancer screening behaviors among women aged 20-39 years.
Detailed description
Breast cancer is the most frequently diagnosed cancer among women worldwide and remains a major public health concern. Early detection through screening is essential for reducing breast cancer-related morbidity and mortality. However, many women continue to experience barriers to screening participation, including limited awareness, insufficient knowledge, low perceived susceptibility, fear of diagnosis, and inadequate health beliefs regarding breast cancer and its screening methods. Digital health interventions have emerged as accessible and cost-effective approaches for delivering health education and promoting preventive health behaviors. Social media platforms, particularly Instagram, are widely used by young women and offer an effective channel for disseminating health-related information. Podcasts provide an additional narrative-based educational approach that may enhance engagement, improve information retention, and support behavior change through emotionally meaningful content. This randomized controlled trial aims to evaluate the effectiveness of an Instagram- and podcast-based intervention in improving breast cancer awareness, health beliefs, and screening behaviors among women aged 20-39 years. Participants in the intervention group will receive evidence-based educational content through Instagram posts and podcasts, while the control group will receive no intervention during the study period. Outcomes will include breast cancer awareness, health beliefs related to breast cancer screening, and screening behaviors such as breast self-examination practices. The findings of this study are expected to provide evidence regarding the effectiveness of combined social media and podcast-based interventions as scalable, low-cost strategies for promoting breast cancer awareness and encouraging preventive screening behaviors among women.
Interventions
OTHERInstagram-Based Breast Cancer Awareness Intervention
Participants will follow the "Breast Health Academy" Instagram account and receive an 8-week Instagram-based breast cancer awareness intervention. Educational breast cancer awareness and screening content will be shared as posts and stories on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. Reminder stories encouraging breast self-examination (BSE), such as "Do not forget to perform your monthly BSE" and "Remember to perform BSE this week," will be shared on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays. Stories will also be saved as highlights. No content will be shared on Fridays, and all posts and stories will be published at the same time each day.
OTHERInstagram-Podcast-Based Breast Cancer Awareness Intervention
Participants will follow the "Breast Health Academy Plus" Instagram account and receive an 8-week Instagram- and podcast-based breast cancer awareness intervention. Educational breast cancer awareness and screening content will be shared as posts and stories on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Saturdays. Reminder stories encouraging breast self-examination (BSE) will be shared on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Sundays and saved as highlights. In addition, one educational podcast episode developed for the intervention will be delivered weekly via Instagram direct message every Friday. All content will be provided at the same time each day throughout the intervention period.
Sponsors
Ankara University
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
SCREENING
Masking
DOUBLE (Subject, Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
FEMALE
Age
20 Years to 39 Years
Healthy volunteers
Yes
Inclusion criteria
* Women aged 20-39 years * Able to read and write Turkish * Turkish citizens * Have an active Instagram account and access it at least once daily * No previous diagnosis of cancer * Willing to participate and provide informed consent
Exclusion criteria
* No access to a smartphone with the Instagram application * Visual, hearing, or cognitive impairment that may prevent participation in the intervention Withdrawal Criteria: * Failure to complete the assigned podcast sessions during the intervention period * Participant request to withdraw from the study at any time
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Breast Cancer Awareness Scale | Assessments will be performed at baseline and Week 8. | The Breast Cancer Awareness Measure assesses awareness of breast cancer symptoms, breast self-examination practices, and age-related risk perception. Total scores range from 0 to 3, with higher scores indicating greater breast cancer awareness. |
| Champion's Health Belief Model Scale in Breast Cancer Screening | Assessments will be performed at baseline and Week 8. | The Champion's Health Belief Model Scale (CHBMS) for Breast Cancer Screening is a validated instrument used to assess health beliefs related to breast cancer screening. The Turkish version consists of six subscales: perceived susceptibility (3 items), perceived seriousness (6 items), health motivation (5 items), perceived benefits of breast self-examination (BSE) (4 items), perceived barriers to BSE (8 items), and BSE self-efficacy/confidence (10 items). Each subscale is evaluated separately, and no total score is calculated. Higher scores on the perceived susceptibility, perceived seriousness, health motivation, BSE benefits, and BSE self-efficacy/confidence subscales indicate stronger health beliefs, whereas higher scores on the BSE barriers subscale indicate greater perceived barriers to breast cancer screening and breast self-examination. |
Secondary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Breast Cancer Screening Behavior Questionnaire | Assessments will be performed at baseline and Week 8. | Breast Cancer Screening Behavior Questionnaire. A researcher-developed 3-item questionnaire assessing breast cancer screening behaviors, including breast self-examination within the previous month, clinical breast examination by a healthcare professional, and mammography uptake or scheduling. Each item is recorded as Yes or No and analyzed separately. No total score is calculated; therefore, minimum and maximum scores are not applicable. |
| Participant Satisfaction (VAS) | Assessed at Week 8. | Participant satisfaction with the Instagram- and podcast-based intervention will be assessed using a 0-10 Visual Analog Scale (VAS), where 0 indicates "not satisfied at all" and 10 indicates "extremely satisfied." |
Countries
Turkey (Türkiye)
Contacts
CONTACTBaise BİCAV
CONTACTZehra BİCAV
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORBaise Bicav
Yüksek İhtisas University
PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATORZehra Bicav
Yüksek İhtisas University
STUDY_DIRECTORSevinç Kutlutürkan
Ankara University
STUDY_DIRECTORFiliz Ünal Toprak
Saglik Bilimleri Universitesi
Outcome results
None listed