An Evaluation of the Quality and Content of Web Sites on Cancer Related Fatigue

Abstract

Cancer-related fatigue is a common symptom for cancer patients. Due to a lack of information from health professionals about cancer-related fatigue, patients often seek information from the Internet. This study evaluated the quality and accuracy of cancer-related fatigue content available online and determined whether any relationships existed between indicators of quality of Web site and accuracy of content. A sample of 25 cancer-related fatigue Web sites was evaluated for quality and accuracy of content using a total score against a checklist of adopted criteria. Although no correlation was found between the quality of Web sites and the accuracy of content, Web sites with accurate information about the causes of cancer-related fatigue were associated with significantly higher total scores. Similarly, Web sites with accurate information pertaining to psychosocial factors were also associated with a significantly higher total score. This suggests that accurate content is significantly related to the overall performance of a Web site. Likewise, significantly higher total scores were obtained for Web sites that included accurate etiological information on the potential interactions of biological processes, psychosocial factors, and other factors such as demographics. A list of the top performing cancer-related fatigue Web sites based on quality and accuracy of content criteria is presented.