RESUMO
Cervical cancer (CC) is the fourth most common cancer among women in the world and the second in Africa. CC is the third most frequent cancer and the first cause of cancer-related death among women in Cabo Verde, with an estimated incidence of 17 cases per 100,000 women. The mortality rate is around 10.5% and represents one of the largest percentages of all types of cancer diagnosed in women in the country. The high mortality rate can be explained by the absence of a national screening programme and a lack of human and physical resources. This study aims to determine the level of knowledge, attitudes and practices on CC among undergraduate female students in Cabo Verde in 2020. Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study, using a self-administered structured questionnaire, was conducted in six higher education institutions (HEI) in Cabo Verde between November and December 2020. A total of 618 female undergraduate students were recruited using a simple random sampling technique. Descriptive statistical data analysis was used to report the results. Results: The response rate was 96.6% (n = 618). Most of the participants, 90.6% (549), were single, with average age of 21.79 years (SD =±4). Although most of the participants had already heard about CC (94.6%), most students showed a low knowledge about this disease (86.2%). Moreover, only 9.1% reported having been screened for CC. Conclusion: Most undergraduate female students enrolled in HEI in Cabo Verde have poor knowledge and unfavourable attitudes toward CC. The level of knowledge is quite unsatisfactory. Within this context, the implementation of health policies focused on human papillomavirus education, prevention strategies, and CC screening is crucial.
RESUMO
Low molecular weight protein tyrosine phosphatases (LMW-PTPs) are a family of 18-kDa enzymes involved in cell growth regulation. Human acid phosphatase 1 (ACP1) is genetically polymorphic, and three common alleles segregating at the ACP1 locus on the short arm of chromosome 2 give rise to six phenotypes. Each allele appears to encode two electrophoretically different isozymes, fast and slow, which are produced in allele-specific ratios. Fast isozymes are related with cytoskeletal organization, cellular organization, and spreading. Slow isozymes are associated with growth factor receptors and dephosphorylation. In this study, ACP1 genetic polymorphisms were determined by polymerase chain reaction-restriction fragment length polymorphism on 74 subjects with various cancers; the control group was 236 healthy subjects randomly selected. With genotypes cumulated according to fast isoform concentration, [A + AC] < [AB + BC] < [BB], subjects with cancer presented an increase of fast isozyme concentration (BB 38.2%; P = 0.002, chi2), relative to the control sample (19.8%). The increase of fast isozyme concentration increased the invasive capacity of cancer cells, whereas a decrease of slow isozyme concentration in cancer did not cause growth inhibition and so resulted in cancer cell proliferation.
