Breast cancer is the most frequent malignant cancer among women, which constitutes an im-portant medical, economic and social problem. An equally significant problem is cervical cancer and, although a gradual decrease in the morbidi-ty rates has been observed in Poland, it still constitutes a challenge for health care professionals. A high morbidity due to these types of cancer necessitates the undertaking of actions of a prophy-lactic character, aimed at making women aware of the factors increasing morbidity risk. The objective of the study was the presentation of health behaviours of women concerning the prevention of breast and cervical cancer according to the place of residence (urban, rural). In the light of the studies conducted it may be presumed that women possess an incomplete knowledge in the area of cancer prophylaxis. A small percentage of women systematically perform self-examination of the breast, while only a half of them regularly report for cytology. Awareness of the necessity for performing prophylactic examinations was the highest among re-spondents from large cities, slightly lower among rural inhabitants, while it was the lowest among women living in small towns.