Though Most Breast Cancer Information On Web Is Accurate, Caution Recommended

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Main Category: Breast Cancer
Also Included In: Cancer / Oncology;  IT / Internet / E-mail;  Women's Health / Gynecology
Article Date: 12 Feb 2008 - 0:00 PDT

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According to a recent study published in Cancer, most breast cancer data found online is accurate - only 1 in 20 breast cancer Web pages had inaccuracies, but sites featuring complementary and alternative medicine were 15 times more likely to contain false or misleading health information.

Researchers at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and the University of Texas School of Health Information Sciences at Houston (SHIS) used a specific quality criteria to extensively analyze Web pages dedicated to disseminating breast cancer information. The paper is part of a project to determine whether existing quality assessment tools can identify false or inaccurate online breast cancer information. It is believed that more patients seek medical and health information online than visit a physician, according to the Pew Internet and American Life Project.

Authors Funda Meric-Bernstam, Elmer Bernstam, and colleagues retrieved 343 Web pages using search engines that consumers are likely to use and reviewed them for 15 quality criteria such as display of authorship, date of creation and last modification. They note that reproducibility of the quality criteria was important. About 5 percent of the Web sites contained inaccurate statements - 41 of the 343.

According to Funda Meric-Bernstam, many of her patients have gone on the Internet for education and are well-informed about breast cancer before their first appointment with her. "Often it's clearly a benefit. For example, I've had patients who were recommended mastectomies that were really breast conservation candidates. They actually figured this out by going online and then seeking out surgeons capable of performing the surgery," says Meric-Bernstam. "In contrast, there are times patients read about treatments that clearly do not apply to them, which can increase their level of anxiety or expectations for a treatment that they are not a candidate for. Of course, one also worries about patients who go online and then ultimately do not seek out any treatment despite it being necessary."

Internist Elmer Bernstam adds, "consumers are taught to look for Web sites where the author's credentials are identified, his or her affiliations are disclosed and other information is listed." However, he cautions that none of these criteria ensure accuracy.

Meric-Bernstam has also found that breast cancer information available online is more accurate than what is found in other fields of health. Acknowledging that the amount of information about health available on the Internet since the data were collected in 2004 has increased, the authors believe that the issue regarding specific quality criteria is timely.

Bernstam notes, "the question that we really tried to answer was if we could separate Web sites that have misinformation from Sites that have more accurate content." The researchers were unable to find a combination of criteria that allowed them to differentiate the Web sites with accurate information from the ones with inaccurate information. They hope to use such quality criteria in order to develop a tool to help consumers screen for sites with misinformation.

"However, our current recommendation to patients is to be skeptical, make sure what patients read is applicable to their specific medical well-being and not to take action without consulting a clinician," concludes Meric-Bernstram.

Study Authors: Elmer Bernstam, Funda Meric-Bernstam, Muhammad F. Walji, Smitha Sagaram, Deepak Sagaram, Craig Johnson.

University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center
http://www.mdanderson.org

Written by: Peter M Crosta
Copyright: Medical News Today
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