Social Media and Mobile Technology for Cancer Prevention and Treatment

Abstract

OVERVIEW Given the number of lives affected by cancer and the great potential for optimizing well-being via lifestyle changes, patients, providers, health care systems, advocacy groups, and entrepreneurs are looking to digital solutions to enhance patient care and broaden prevention efforts. Thousands of health-oriented mobile websites and apps have been developed, with a majority focused upon lifestyle behaviors (e.g., exercise, diet, smoking). In this review, we consider the use and potential of social media and mHealth technologies for cancer prevention, cancer treatment, and survivorship. We identify key principles in research and practice, summarize prior reviews, and highlight notable case studies and patient resources. Further, with the potential for scaled delivery and broad reach, we consider application of social media and mHealth technologies in low-resource settings. With clear advantages for reach, social media and mHealth technologies offer the ability to scale and engage entire populations at low cost, develop supportive social networks, connect patients and providers, encourage adherence with cancer care, and collect vast quantities of data for advancing cancer research. Development efforts have been rapid and numerous, yet evaluation of intervention effects on behavior change and health outcomes are sorely needed, and regulation around data security issues is notably lacking. Attention to broader audiences is also needed, with targeted development for culturally diverse groups and non-English speakers. Further investment in research to build the evidence base and identify best practices will help delineate and actualize the potential of social media and mHealth technologies for cancer prevention and treatment.

Assessment of the use of the Internet and social media among people with bladder cancer and their carers, and the quality of available patient‐centric online resources: a systematic review

“…The findings further illustrate that there is lack of rigorous evidence on the benefits of social media in improving outcomes for people with BCa. In a recent survey of patients with cancer ( n = 370), 56% believed that it would be beneficial to contact their care provider through social media and 22% of patients reported they use social media for health information . Our findings suggest that these numbers are too optimistic for patients with BCa.…”

Brief culturally informed smartphone interventions decrease breast cancer symptom burden among Latina breast cancer survivors

“…Indeed, studies have shown that psychosocial interventions specifically tailored to Latina BCS are effective, but they have been limited by the delivery of the interventions in‐person or over the telephone. eHealth platforms such as smartphone applications are more scalable than other modes of intervention delivery and provide an innovative opportunity among Latinas, who seek health information online at similar or higher rates than other racial/ethnic groups in the United States . However, the majority of smartphone applications that have been disseminated are not evidence‐based, and almost none are culturally informed and available in Spanish …”

Developments in Privacy and Data Ownership in Mobile Health Technologies, 2016-2019

“…The HITECH Act of 2009 subsequently enhanced penalties for HIPAA violations, expanded enforcement, and added a data breach notification requirement [9,26]. HIPAA has a number of limitations, including the fact that it does not cover all medical records (only those maintained by certain types of record holders) and that it does not cover all parties that possess medical information [9,27,28]. It is therefore important to note that HIPAA does not cover many websites that gather health information [9].…”

“…Mobile app data security continues to be an area of concern for the industry. Many authors discuss the vulnerabilities of data when being stored or during transmission to third parties [28,74,75]. There is still some debate in the literature about the security risks and benefits of the cloud; while some authors fear that cloud infrastructure is more susceptible to privacy and security attacks [76], others postulate that cloud service providers may address data privacy and security more effectively due to economies of scale and scope, which enable them to maintain more sophisticated defenses against cyber-attacks [77].…”