Cancer communication and informatics research across the cancer continuum.

Abstract

Over the past decade, dramatic changes brought about by a rapid diffusion of Internet technologies, cellular telephones, mobile devices, personal digital assistants, electronic health records, and data visualization have helped to create a revolution in health communication. To understand the implications of this communication revolution for cancer care, the National Cancer Institute launched an ambitious set of research priorities under its "extraordinary opportunities" program. We present an overview of some of the relevant behavioral research being conducted within the perspective of this extraordinary opportunity in cancer communication research. We begin by tracing the implications of this research for behavioral scientists across the continuum of cancer care from primary prevention (e.g., tobacco control, diet, exercise, sun protection, and immunization against human papilloma virus), to secondary prevention (e.g., screening for polyps, lesions, and early stage neoplasms), to diagnosis and treatment, posttreatment survivorship, and end of life. Along each point of the continuum, we describe a natural evolution of knowledge from studies on the traditional role of media to research on the changing role of new media and informatics, and we carefully highlight the role that psychological research has played in improving communication- and health-related outcomes along the way. We conclude with an appeal to psychologists of many different backgrounds to join with biomedical researchers, engineers, clinical practitioners, and others to accelerate progress against cancer.

Lung Cancer Messages on Twitter: Content Analysis and Evaluation

“…Early detection Text that describes screening tests (eg, LDCT) and family history [4]. needed in light of recent announcements about updated screening recommendations, novel treatment approaches, scientific discoveries, and celebrity cancer diagnoses [3,[6][7][8][9][10]. Preliminary research suggests that social media may serve as an important tool for disseminating prevention, screening, treatment, and survivorship messages to a widespread audience [3,7,9,11].…”

“…A variety of studies have examined cancer news coverage across the cancer control continuum, which includes prevention, detection, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship, and end of life [4,5], but few recent considerations have examined how cancer information spreads on social media [6]. Additional research examining changes in cancer communication and the information environment is Text that promotes awareness of lung cancer (eg, fundraising, prevalence), discusses potential symptoms and signs of lung cancer (eg, coughing), or makes general references to cancer [23,24].…”

Social Interactions and Cultural Repertoires as Resources for Coping With Breast Cancer

“…However, this study clearly shows that, beyond the limited space and time of the clinical encounters (Hesse, Beckjord, Finney Rutten, Fagerlin, & Cameron, 2015), there is a texture of social interactions among patients that is currently understudied. 2.…”

Use of Mobile Devices to Help Cancer Patients Meet Their Information Needs in Non-Inpatient Settings: Systematic Review (Preprint)

“…Mobile devices therefore offer the potential for wide reach at the point of need for patients with cancer. Several existing systematic and scoping reviews have explored the general use of mobile devices for patients with cancer [18][19][20][21][22][23]. Findings from these reviews show that mobile interventions have been developed for a range of purposes, including the prevention, detection, and management of cancer; however, most interventions have been designed to support patients during the treatment phase, with fewer interventions developed to assist prevention, diagnosis, follow up and survivorship.…”