Cervical cancer screening uptake in Côte d'Ivoire: Analysis of prevalence and associated factors

Cervical cancer is a major public health concern that affects millions of women worldwide. Screening for cervical cancer is one of the preventive interventions. However, cervical cancer screening uptake is low in sub-Saharan African countries. This study examined the prevalence of cervical cancer screening and its associated factors among women of reproductive age in Côte d'Ivoire.

A weighted sample of 6,855 women aged 30-49 years was drawn from the 2021 Demographic and Health Survey (DHS) of Côte d'Ivoire. The DHS used a cross-sectional design, and respondents were sampled using a multistage cluster sampling technique. Percentages with confidence intervals (CIs) were used to summarise cervical cancer screening uptake. We used multilevel binary logistic regression analysis to examine the factors associated with cervical cancer screening uptake. Stata 18 was used for all the analyses and statistical significance was set at p < 0.05.

The proportion of women screened for cervical cancer was 7.7% [6.4, 9.3]. The odds of cervical cancer screening uptake increased with increasing levels of education, with the highest odds among women with higher education [adjusted odds ratio (aOR) = 2.34; 95% CI = 1.14, 4.79]. Women covered by health insurance [aOR = 2.63; 95% CI = 1.48, 4.69] and those who had visited a health facility in the last 12 months before the survey [aOR = 1.83; 95% CI = 1.27, 2.65] were more likely to be screened for cervical cancer compared to their counterparts who were uninsured and those without a history of health facility visits, respectively. Also, the odds of cervical cancer screening uptake increased with an increasing wealth index, with the highest odds among those in the richest wealth quintile [aOR = 4.67; 95% CI = 1.66, 13.12].

Cervical cancer screening uptake was low in Côte d'Ivoire. To achieve Sustainable Development Goal 3, health authorities, policymakers, and other stakeholders could implement strategies to scale up uptake. The identified associated factors could aid in the development of cervical cancer screening interventions.