* Corresponding author: Elieh Abasi, Faculty of Medical Sciences, Azad University, Sari Branch, Sari, Iran. Tel: +989112562059; Email: elieh_abasi@yahoo.com The Impact of Female Students' Breast Self-Examination training on their Mothers' Awareness Elieh Abasi (MSc) 1* , Homaira Tahmasebi (MSc) 2 , Mandana Zafari (PhD) 3 , Maryam Tofigi (MSc) 3 , Sogra Hasani (MSc) 2 1 Faculty of Medical Sciences, Azad University, Sari Branch, Sari, Iran 2 Department of Nursing, Islamic Azad University, Sari Branch, Sari, Iran 3 Department of Midwifery, Islamic Azad University, Sari Branch, Sari, Iran A R T I C L E I N F O A B S T R A C T Article type: Original article Background & aim: Breast cancer is the most common cancer in women, which its early diagnosis is of paramount importance for the prevention of its associated mortality and morbidity. Breast self-examination (BSE) is one of the methods for the early detection of breast cancer. Education plays an important role in increasing BSE practice. Regarding this, the present study was conducted to measure the impact of BSE training to female students on their mothers’ awareness. Methods: This quasi-experimental study was conducted on 100 university students and their mothers in Sari, Iran, in 2015. After educating the students about BSE, they were asked to train their mothers in this regard. The data were collected before and one month after training, using demographic, BSE attitude assessment, and BSE questionnaires. Data analysis was performed in SPSS software (version 17) using descriptive statistics, Chi-square test, t-test, and Fisher's exact test. Results: The results of the independent t-test revealed a significant difference between the two groups in terms of knowledge at the post-training stage (P=0.000). Furthermore, the two groups had significant mean differences in the knowledge scores obtained before and after the training (P<0.001). Also, the intervention group showed a significant difference in their knowledge scores at the post-training stage, compared to that at the pre-training phase (P=0.000). However, regarding the control group, this variable was not significantly different between the two stages (P=0.29). Conclusion: As the findings indicated, BSE education could positively affect mother’s knowledge in this regard. Therefore, it is suggested to use this training method for promoting mothers’ knowledge about BSE. Article History: Received: 30-Aug-2016 Accepted: 30-Jun-2017 Key words: Breast self-examination Education Knowledge University students Mothers Please cite this paper as: Abasi E, Tahmasebi H, Zafari M, Tofigi M, Hasani S. The Impact of Female Students' Breast Self-Examination training on their Mothers' Awareness. Journal of Midwifery and Reproductive Health. 2018; 6(4): 1454-1461. DOI: 10.22038/jmrh.2018.18718.1195 Introduction Breast cancer is the most common cancer and leading cause of death among women (1). This cancer accounts for almost one-third of all cancers in females (2). According to an investigation performed by New York Cancer Center, the incidence of breast cancer has been on a growing trend among various age groups since mid-1940 (3). Based on the cancer records obtained in the last few decades in Iran, breast cancer is the most common cancer among women in this country (3). The average age of the Iranian women with breast cancer is 48.8 with the highest malignancy in women aged 40- 49 years (4). Certain factors are effective in breast cancer, such as early menarche, late menopause, BRCA1 and BRCA2 genes, personal and family history of breast cancer, and hormone consumption (2).