Introduction: Cancer is one of the main causes of suffering and death in the world. Among the most common types of cancer in women are breast cancer and cervical cancer. With preventive screening programmes, these types of cancer can be discovered in time and therefore cured, which is why it is important for women to be properly informed about the key facts regarding these two types of cancer, as well as the steps they can take to reduce the risk of cancer development. It is also important for women to regularly attend organized screening programs. Purpose: Our goal was to assess the knowledge about breast and cervical cancer of the female nursing students of the Faculty of Health Sciences. Moreover, we wanted to estimate their knowledge and implementation of prevention methods for both types of cancer. Methods: Our diploma work was based on the quantitative approach. Data was gathered with the use of a structured survey questionnaire, which was based on various researches in other countries. The research sample consisted of 114 full- and part-time students of the Nursing study program at the Faculty of Health Sciences. The acquired data was analyzed with the use of Excel and SPSS programs and presented in our thesis both descriptively and in tables. Results: The results showed that the students are well-informed about the frequency, but they lack knowledge of the risk factors, symptoms and signs of breast cancer development. They are very knowledgeable about the most appropriate time for breast self-examination and are cognizant of at least one position of self-examination. The students are semi-familiar with the Dora program. However, the results of the study on cervical cancer showed that the students are not familiar with the frequency of the cancer development and are not well-informed about the various types of cancer that can be caused by the human papillomavirus infection. They can partially recognize the risk factors, signs and symptoms of cervical cancer, but are very well-informed about the possible ways of human papillomavirus transmission. The students are also well-informed about the preventive vaccination against the infection with the virus and they are partially familiar with the Zora program. The results showed statistically significant differences in the assessment of students' own knowledge, with students with secondary high school education other than nursing better assessing their knowledge of breast cancer (p = 0,004) and cervical cancer (p = 0.016), than students who finished a secondary school of nursing. Discussion and conclusion: Our research showed that the students' knowledge about breast cancer and cervical cancer is average. Some answers in the survey questionnaire were answered well, while some were answered poorly. The students themselves evaluated their own knowledge as good, while the students with secondary school education other than nursing evaluated their own knowledge higher than the students who finished a secondary school of nursing did. Considering that the nursing students are potentially future medical health workers and that during their career they will be responsible for informing the general public about health, it is important for them to gain decent knowledge about breast and cervical cancer, as well as their corresponding preventive methods for women's health during their studies, and then improve it further during their career.
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