Knowledge of Sunscreen Usage and Skin Cancer Among Malaysian Medical Students – A cross sectional study

ABSTRACT Background Excessive ultraviolet light (UV) can cause premature skin aging and potentially skin cancer. This study evaluated the knowledge, attitude of sunscreen, and skin cancer among Malaysian medical students. Methods This cross-sectional study was conducted from October 2022 to November 2022 among the clinical year medical students in a private medical university in Malaysia. The respondents were recruited by purposive sampling method. The content validated questionnaire was used to collect the data, and the data collection was done via online platform. Results There are a total of 117 responses that we collected through an online questionnaire via Google Forms. Among the respondents, 59.8% of the respondents reported of having a poor knowledge about sunscreen. However, 64.96% reported to have good knowledge about skin cancer. Approximately half of the respondents (48.7%) had a good attitude towards sunscreen. Females are more likely to use them compared to men (OR: 9.12, 95% CI: 3.52, 23.64) and there is a difference between ethnicity and the usage of sunscreen. Conclusion This study demonstrated limited knowledge of sunscreen among medical students. However, they are having better knowledge of skin cancer. Our results spotted the need for education about sunscreen among Malaysian medical students.