Cancer Communication on Social Media

Elizabeth A. Gage‐Bouchard · Susan A. LaValley · Michelle A. Mollica · Lynda Kwon Beaupin

109 citations0/0 files storedCancer Nursing

No readable copy stored yet — this record is metadata only.

No open-access location is known for this record yet.

Literature note Cite in a project Citation map

Social Media in Health Education Social Media and Politics Health Literacy and Information Accessibility

Abstract

BACKGROUND: Americans are increasingly using social media (such as Facebook, YouTube, and Twitter) for health-related communication. Much of the previous research on social media and health communication has focused on Facebook groups related to a specific disease or Facebook pages related to an advocacy organization. Less is known about how people communicate about cancer on personal Facebook pages. OBJECTIVE: In this study, we expand upon previous research by examining how cancer caregivers use personal Facebook pages for cancer-related communication. METHODS: We examined themes in cancer-related exchanges through a content analysis of 12 months of data from 18 publically available Facebook pages hosted by parents of children with acute lymphoblastic leukemia (15 852 total posts). RESULTS: Six themes emerged: (1) documenting the cancer journey, (2) sharing emotional strain associated with caregiving, (3) promoting awareness and advocacy about pediatric cancer, (4) fundraising, (5) mobilizing support, and (6) expressing gratitude for support. CONCLUSIONS: Building upon previous research documenting the increasing use of social media for health-related communication and support, our findings show that personal Facebook pages offer a platform for cancer caregivers to share their cancer-related experiences, promote advocacy and awareness, and mobilize social support. IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Providers must recognize the importance of social media as a vehicle for support and communication for families of children with cancer. Nurses should educate parents on how to appraise information obtained through Facebook using evidence-based guidelines. Providers can encourage caregivers to use Facebook as a tool for communication, information, and support.

Paper brief

Loading…

Cite this work

Citation unavailable for this work.

BibTeX RIS CSL-JSON

No public copy is stored for this record, so only the metadata is cited.

Citations in this library

Citation map →

Stored only when both papers are in the corpus — 109 citations exist upstream.

References

2013A New Dimension of Health Care: Systematic Review of the Uses, Benefits, and Limitations of Social Media for Health Communication 2009Social Media Use in the United States: Implications for Health Communication 2011Seeking Support on Facebook: A Content Analysis of Breast Cancer Groups 2013Social media use among patients and caregivers: a scoping review 2012Web 2.0 for Health Promotion: Reviewing the Current Evidence 2011Cancer Survivorship in the Age of YouTube and Social Media: A Narrative Analysis 2014Communicating About Cancer Through Facebook: A Qualitative Analysis of a Breast Cancer Awareness Page

Cited by

2019Social media usage and online professionalism among registered nurses: A cross-sectional survey 2017Analysis of the Use and Impact of Twitter During American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meetings From 2011 to 2016: Focus on Advanced Metrics and User Trends 2017Lung Cancer Messages on Twitter: Content Analysis and Evaluation 2018Users, Uses, and Effects of Social Media in Dietetic Practice: Scoping Review of the Quantitative and Qualitative Evidence 2023Methods for Analyzing the Contents of Social Media for Health Care: Scoping Review

Explore the map →

Papers that cite the same references — the relational fallback while embeddings are still backfilling.

Imported from OpenAlex (CC0) — nothing here is generated.