Profiles of 800,000 Users of the National Cancer Institute's Cancer Information Service Since the Debut of Online Assistance, 2003-2008

Overview

Journal Prev Chronic Dis

Specialty Public Health

Date 2010 Feb 18

PMID 20158959

Citations 4

Authors

Nigel Bush

Robin Vanderpool

Ludmila Cofta-Woerpel

Phyllis Wallace

Affiliations

Soon will be listed here.

Abstract

Introduction: In 2002, the Cancer Information Service (CIS) of the National Cancer Institute added to its toll-free telephone number 2 choices of media for access to cancer information specialists: e-mail and a proprietary online instant messaging service called LiveHelp. We sought to determine how new media users differ from telephone callers and the US population in general.

Methods: During the 6 years since the new media were added, we collected data from more than 800,000 people who contacted CIS.

Results: Telephone calls to CIS declined while the number of LiveHelp and e-mail inquiries steadily increased. People who contacted CIS by telephone and LiveHelp were predominantly white and female and, compared with the general population, were relatively well educated. LiveHelp users were significantly younger, more educated, and more affluent than telephone callers. CIS clients asked most frequently for general cancer site information, information about treatment and side effects management, screening programs, and economic assistance. Telephone callers most often asked about breast cancer.

Conclusion: The Internet has introduced new sources of health information and possibly a new type of health information seeker. With LiveHelp and e-mail, CIS is poised to meet the needs of the digital health consumer and also the traditional telephone caller.

Citing Articles

Protocol for a Randomized Controlled Trial of Proactive Web-Based Versus Telephone-Based Information and Support: Can Electronic Platforms Deliver Effective Care for Lung Cancer Patients?.

Paul C, Boyes A, OBrien L, Baker A, Henskens F, Roos I JMIR Res Protoc. 2016; 5(4):e202.

PMID: 27784648 PMC: 5103105. DOI: 10.2196/resprot.6248.

Latinos and Cancer Information: Perspectives of Patients, Health Professionals and Telephone Cancer Information Specialists.

Kaplan C, Napoles A, Davis S, Lopez M, Pasick R, Livaudais-Toman J J Health Dispar Res Pract. 2016; 9(2):154-167.

PMID: 27642542 PMC: 5023065.

Evaluation of a Personalized, Web-Based Decision Aid for Lung Cancer Screening.

Lau Y, Caverly T, Cao P, Cherng S, West M, Gaber C Am J Prev Med. 2015; 49(6):e125-9.

PMID: 26456873 PMC: 5544524. DOI: 10.1016/j.amepre.2015.07.027.

Patient ability and willingness to participate in a web-based intervention to improve hypertension control.

Green B, Anderson M, Ralston J, Catz S, Fishman P, Cook A J Med Internet Res. 2011; 13(1):e1.

PMID: 21371993 PMC: 3217242. DOI: 10.2196/jmir.1625.

References

La Porta M, Hagood H, Kornfeld J, Treiman K . Partnership as a means for reaching special populations: evaluating the NCI's CIS Partnership Program. J Cancer Educ. 2007; 22(1 Suppl):S35-40. DOI: 10.1007/BF03174344. View

Squiers L, Finney Rutten L, Treiman K, Bright M, Hesse B . Cancer patients' information needs across the cancer care continuum: evidence from the cancer information service. J Health Commun. 2005; 10 Suppl 1:15-34. DOI: 10.1080/10810730500263620. View

Gustafson D, McTavish F, Stengle W, Ballard D, Jones E, Julesberg K . Reducing the digital divide for low-income women with breast cancer: a feasibility study of a population-based intervention. J Health Commun. 2005; 10 Suppl 1:173-93. DOI: 10.1080/10810730500263281. View

Squiers L, Bright M, Finney Rutten L, Atienza A, Treiman K, Moser R . Awareness of the National Cancer Institute's Cancer Information Service: results from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS). J Health Commun. 2006; 11 Suppl 1:117-33. DOI: 10.1080/10810730600637517. View

Carlsson M . Cancer patients seeking information from sources outside the health care system. Support Care Cancer. 2000; 8(6):453-7. DOI: 10.1007/s005200000166. View

La Porta M, Hagood H, Kornfeld J, Treiman K . Evaluating the NCI's Cancer Information Service Contact Centers: meeting and exceeding the expectations of the public. J Cancer Educ. 2007; 22(1 Suppl):S18-25. DOI: 10.1007/BF03174342. View

Carroll A, Rivara F, Ebel B, Zimmerman F, Christakis D . Household computer and Internet access: The digital divide in a pediatric clinic population. AMIA Annu Symp Proc. 2006; :111-5. PMC: 1560660. View

Morra M, Van Nevel J, Nealon E, Mazan K, Thomsen C . History of the Cancer Information Service. J Natl Cancer Inst Monogr. 1993; (14):7-33. View

Nair M, Hickok J, Roscoe J, Morrow G . Sources of information used by patients to learn about chemotherapy side effects. J Cancer Educ. 2000; 15(1):19-22. DOI: 10.1080/08858190009528647. View

10.

Mandl K, Feit S, Pena B, Kohane I . Growth and determinants of access in patient e-mail and Internet use. Arch Pediatr Adolesc Med. 2000; 154(5):508-11. DOI: 10.1001/archpedi.154.5.508. View

11.

Wagner T, Bundorf M, Singer S, Baker L . Free internet access, the digital divide, and health information. Med Care. 2005; 43(4):415-20. DOI: 10.1097/01.mlr.0000156857.14152.6e. View

12.

Kim E, Mayani A, Modi S, Kim Y, Soh C . Evaluation of patient-centered electronic health record to overcome digital divide. Conf Proc IEEE Eng Med Biol Soc. 2007; 2006:593-6. DOI: 10.1109/IEMBS.2005.1616482. View

13.

Bright M, Fleisher L, Thomsen C, Morra M, Marcus A, Gehring W . Exploring e-Health usage and interest among cancer information service users: the need for personalized interactions and multiple channels remains. J Health Commun. 2005; 10 Suppl 1:35-52. DOI: 10.1080/10810730500265609. View

14.

Squiers L, Bush N, Vanderpool R, Cofta-Woerpel L, Fabrizio C . Bridging the critical chasm between service and research: the Cancer Information Service's collaboratory. J Cancer Educ. 2007; 22(1 Suppl):S49-55. PMC: 3173941. DOI: 10.1080/08858190701348398. View

15.

Haughton L, Kreuter M, Hall J, Holt C, Wheetley E . Digital divide and stability of access in African American women visiting urban public health centers. J Health Care Poor Underserved. 2005; 16(2):362-74. DOI: 10.1353/hpu.2005.0034. View

16.

Cotten S, Gupta S . Characteristics of online and offline health information seekers and factors that discriminate between them. Soc Sci Med. 2004; 59(9):1795-806. DOI: 10.1016/j.socscimed.2004.02.020. View

17.

La Porta M, Hagood H, Patt J, Hodorowski J, Treiman K . The NCI's Cancer Information Service: meeting the public's cancer information needs via the internet. J Cancer Educ. 2007; 22(1 Suppl):S26-34. DOI: 10.1007/BF03174343. View

18.

Whaley K . America's digital divide: 2000-2003 trends. J Med Syst. 2004; 28(2):183-95. DOI: 10.1023/b:joms.0000023301.09308.d9. View

19.

Jackson L, Zhao Y, Kolenic 3rd A, Fitzgerald H, Harold R, von Eye A . Race, gender, and information technology use: the new digital divide. Cyberpsychol Behav. 2008; 11(4):437-42. DOI: 10.1089/cpb.2007.0157. View

20.

Bush N, Bowen D, Wooldridge J, Ludwig A, Meischke H, Robbins R . What do we mean by Internet access? A framework for health researchers. Prev Chronic Dis. 2005; 1(4):A15. PMC: 1277955. View