Website and social media presence for National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research Program (NCORP) sites.

Abstract

e23009 Background: The National Cancer Institute Community Oncology Research program (NCORP) is a network which brings cancer clinical trials and care to patients within their own communities. Currently, NCORP consists of 46 sites throughout the United States which receive grant funding through the NCI. We aim to describe the scope of social media use and NCORP dedicated websites. We also aim to describe the correlation between media usage and funding. Methods: We searched NCORP websites and online search engines to identify the social media presence of different NCORP sites. Facebook, Instagram, LinkedIn, and Twitter were the social media sites chosen. Additionally, we searched for NCORP dedicated websites that were separate and distinct from the host institution. We were able to gather public data outlining the total funding received by each site in a three-year span (2019-2021) using the NIH RePORTER. Data was summarized using descriptive statistics. Results: A total of 15 out of 46 sites were determined to have a social media presence, 11 out of 46 sites had NCORP dedicated websites, and 7 out of 46 had both a social media presence and a dedicated website. The social media sites used for the NCORPs were as follows Facebook 8, Twitter 5, LinkedIn 3, and Instagram 1. The content information within the 11 dedicated websites were as follows clinical trials 9, newsletters 2, and provider information 8. All 11 websites had the NCI watermark badge (100% of NCORP websites). The average three-year funding for NCORP sites utilizing social media was $5,371,610. The average three-year funding for NCORP sites without social media was $4,230,552. The average three-year funding for NCORP sites utilizing dedicated websites was $4,681,708. The average three-year funding for NCORP sites without dedicated websites was 4,584,321. There was no statistical significance between funding and websites or social media accounts. Conclusions: NCORPs have an opportunity to disseminate high quality reliable information about cancer clinical trials that meet the need of patients and clinical care providers. However, NCORP sites are rarely a distinct voice on social media or with dedicated websites. Sites may not have resources for this type of communication or may promote the work of NCORP through the communication channels of the host institution(s). Sites with websites or social media accounts had higher average funding. However, this was not significant. Whether social media and NCORP dedicated websites contribute meaningfully to the work of NCI clinical trials remains to be seen and is beyond the scope of this investigation.