ES07.04 Leveraging Social Media to Change the Public Conversation on Lung Cancer Stigma

Abstract

The reality of lung cancer stigma is tangible and has a profound impact on people living with this disease. Further, stigma remains a highly significant barrier to fulfilling the clinical promise of advancements in lung cancer treatment, early detection, and reduced lung cancer burden.1-2 Lung cancer stigma can have far-reaching effects that range from reduced involvement in interventions targeting prevention and early detection efforts such as smoking cessation and screening, impaired patient-clinician communication, delayed access to diagnosis and treatment, negative psychosocial responses, and even more broadly, to limited public support of and actual research funding. The phenomenon of lung cancer stigma is multilevel involving that of the individual, persons in the individuals’ immediate environment, persons in the healthcare system, and society at large, which shapes public perceptions and decisions that impact lung cancer patients (e.g., public attitudes, media campaigns, policy, research funding). Stigma is mainly social in nature. It is commonly a perceived or felt stigma as well as internalized by the individual patient influencing patient behavior. The stigma of lung cancer is perpetuated by the public’s perception that this is a ‘smoker’s only’ disease. However, many people are not aware that approximately 20% of lung cancer patients diagnosed each year are never smokers.3 It is imperative that innovative and novel approaches to changing the public perception of lung cancer and its associated stigma are pursued. If you have lungs, you can get lung cancer. As opposed to the prevailing perspective of blame that highlights a lifestyle choice fueled by addiction (i.e., smoking), we need to change the public conversation around lung cancer to one that focuses on early diagnosis, treatment, research dollars that match the magnitude of this deadly disease, and compassion. Comprehensive tobacco control efforts over the past five decades have been lauded as one of the leading public health successes. Specifically, restrictions to smoking in public buildings and spaces, increased tobacco-related taxation, and public health national media campaigns primarily delivered through fear-based messaging have all led to diminished social acceptance of smoking as an appropriate lifestyle behavior. Collectively, this has contributed to the overall success of decreasing U.S. adult smoking rates from 43% in 1964 to the current 15.5% U.S. adult smoking rate.4 Unfortunately, the demonization of tobacco has had the unintended consequence of stigmatizing the disease of lung cancer negatively impacting those at risk for and living with the disease. Just as the stigmatization of lung cancer did not happen in isolation, addressing this phenomenon requires broad strokes, so to speak, to change the public conversation about lung cancer. We have a unique opportunity to leverage social media platforms like Twitter, Facebook, and Instagram to change this conversation by crafting messaging that empowers rather than further stigmatizes both patients living with lung cancer as well as those at risk. The purpose of this presentation will be to discuss: (1) social media as a platform to change the public dialogue around lung cancer, and subsequently, its associated stigma; (2) how successful traditional population-based marketing can be adapted to the social media platform to target stigma; and (3) future directions in this new communication landscape for evidence-based psychosocial interventions targeted toward decreasing lung cancer stigma. 1. Jacobsen MM, Silverstein SC, Quinn M, et al. Timeliness of access to lung cancer diagnosis and treatment: A scoping literature review. Lung Cancer. 2017;112:156-164. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.lungcan.2017.08.011. 2. Hamann HA, Ostroff JS, Marks EG, Gerber DE, Schiller JH, Lee SJC. Stigma among patients with lung cancer: a patient-reported measurement model. Psychooncology. 2014;23(1):81-92. https://doi.org/10.1002/pon.3371. 3. American Cancer Society. Lung cancer risks for never smokers. https://www.cancer.org/latest-news/why-lung-cancer-strikes-nonsmokers.html. Accessed June 26, 2018. 4. National Center for Chronic Disease Prevention and Health Promotion (US) Office on Smoking and Health. The Health Consequences of Smoking—50 Years of Progress. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (US); 2014. http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/24455788. Accessed June 24, 2018. Social Media, Lung Cancer Stigma