An evaluation of the effectiveness of a class teaching breast self-examination

Interviews were carried out with a sample of women before they were invited to attend a class teaching breast self-examination (BSE), and then again a year later. Two-stage interviews were also carried out with a sample of women in a control district. This enabled an evaluation of the effectiveness of the class by comparing the changes in BSE practice over the year amongst those who attended the class, those who declined to attend the class and those in the control district. Those who attended the class showed a more marked improvement in BSE practice, particularly in the technique used, compared with the non-attenders and those in the control district. This finding was still evident even after a range of possible confounding factors was taken into account. Further analyses showed that beliefs about the value of BSE were the strongest predictors of changes in BSE practice.