Abstract
BackgroundThe use of the internet to satisfy information needs is widespread among cancer patients. Patients’ decisions regarding whether to act upon the information they find strongly depend on the trustworthiness of the information and the medium. Patients who are younger, more highly educated and female are more likely to trust online information. The objectives of this systematic review were to examine the extent to which cancer patients trust in cancer-related online information, internet websites as a source of cancer-related information or the internet as a medium of cancer information.MethodsA systematic review was conducted using five databases (PROSPERO registration number: CRD42017070190). Studies of any kind were included if they measured cancer patients’ trust in online health information. Study quality was assessed using the Research Triangle Institute (RTI) item bank. A narrative synthesis was undertaken to examine the included studies.ResultsOf the 7,314 citations obtained by the search, seven cross-sectional studies were included in the synthesis. A total of 1,054 patients reported having some or a great deal of trust in online cancer information; 154 patients reported moderately trusting such information; and 833 patients reported having no or little trust in online cancer information, internet websites as a source of cancer-related information or the internet as a medium of cancer-related information. Two of the seven studies reported between group comparisons for the above-stated patient characteristics. The methodological quality of the included studies was diverse.ConclusionThe results of the included studies indicates that approximately half of cancer patients appear to trust cancer-specific online information, internet websites as a source of cancer-related information or the internet as an information medium. However, the small number of included studies, high heterogeneity of participants, methods and outcomes calls for further systematic research. It is important to understand that cancer patients do and will increasingly use trusted cancer information websites to search for information concerning their disease. Therefore, physicians and other health care providers should provide more support and advice to these patients.
Highlights
Information needs are among the most prevalent unmet supportive care needs of cancer patients throughout their cancer journey (Harrison et al, 2009)
Approximately half of the cancer patients in the included studies reported that they trusted cancer-related online information, internet websites as a source of cancer-related information or the internet as a medium of cancer-related information
When patients are asked to report how much they trust the information they find online, they might be more likely to interpret the question as a rating of their information literacy (Shenton, 2009) or eHealth literacy (Norman & Skinner, 2006), which are defined as the skills needed to find, retrieve and analyze information in general or health information online and use it appropriately
Summary
Information needs are among the most prevalent unmet supportive care needs of cancer patients throughout their cancer journey (Harrison et al, 2009). The use of the internet to satisfy information needs is widespread among cancer patients. The objectives of this systematic review were to examine the extent to which cancer patients trust in cancer-related online information, internet websites as a source of cancer-related information or the internet as a medium of cancer information. Studies of any kind were included if they measured cancer patients’ trust in online health information. The results of the included studies indicates that approximately half of cancer patients appear to trust cancer-specific online information, internet websites as a source of cancer-related information or the internet as an information medium. The small number of included studies, high heterogeneity of participants, methods and outcomes calls for further systematic research. It is important to understand that cancer patients do and will increasingly use trusted cancer information websites to search for information concerning their disease. Physicians and other health care providers should provide more support and advice to these patients
Sign-in/Register to view highlights & summary Sign-in/Register to access full text options 
Talk to us
Join us for a 30 min session where you can share your feedback and ask us any queries you have
Schedule a callDisclaimer: All third-party content on this website/platform is and will remain the property of their respective owners and is provided on "as is" basis without any warranties, express or implied. Use of third-party content does not indicate any affiliation, sponsorship with or endorsement by them. Any references to third-party content is to identify the corresponding services and shall be considered fair use under The CopyrightLaw.
