Many people who have been touched by cancer actively use available resources

(e.g., the Internet, health care providers, newspapers, brochures, and magazines)

to seek information about the disease. Compared to the general population of

U.S. adults, cancer survivors and people with a family history of the disease are

more likely to engage in cancer information seeking. Sixty-three percent of

cancer survivors and 54 percent of people with a family history report looking

for cancer information, compared to only 27 percent of people with no

personal or family history of cancer.

Data from the Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) have also

shown us that while people say they would prefer to go to a health care

provider for health information, most people actually use the Internet first.

These patterns are similar among cancer survivors, although usage of health

care providers and the Internet as information resources varies with time since

diagnosis. During the first year of a cancer diagnosis, patients report going to

their health care provider as their first source of information; however, this

pattern changes during the time that survivors are in transition (years 2

through 10 post-diagnosis), when Internet usage exceeds health care providers

as survivors’ first resource for cancer information.

In this HINTS Brief, we provide a starting point for improving health

communication with cancer survivors.We distinguish the differences between

information seekers versus non-seekers in the survivor population, and provide

insight on how survivors rate their cancer information seeking experience.

Information Seeking

(Ever Searched for

Cancer Information

by Cancer Status,

Compared to

Overall Population)

HINTS 2005

100

80

60

40

20

0

Cancer Status

No History Family History Personal History

46.68

27.56

54.64

63.11

Adjusted %

Overall

Cancer Survivors’

Information Source

Preferences and

Information

Source Use*

HINTS 2005

* Weighted percentages

are adjusted for gender,

age, education, annual

income, race/ethnicity,

and health insurance

status

100

80

60

40

20

0

year years years years year years years years

Years Since Diagnosis

<= 1 2-5 6-10 11+ <= 1 2-5 6-10 11+

Source Preferred First Source Used First

Provider

Internet

Other

Weighted % Searched for Cancer Information

Survivors’ Satisfaction w

Seeking Cancer Inform

Information Quality Is Biggest Concern

In a HINTS study published in 2008, invest

sought to understand cancer survivors’ ex

and satisfaction with seeking cancer inform

Survivors were asked to recall their last ex

with searching specifically for cancer inform

and to rate that experience on a satisfactio

Almost half of the survivors in the study (4

that they were concerned about the qualit

information they found during their last se

Thirty percent of survivors reported that 

of effort to find the information they need

three percent felt frustrated during their la

and 24% thought that the information they 

difficult to understand.

Information seeking survivors across socio

categories seemed to have similar experien

were no significant differences in satisfactio

race/ethnicity, gender, age, education, or inc

• In 2004 it was estimated that ther

10.8 million cancer survivors in th

representing approximately 3.7% o

population.

• 60% of survivors are currently 65 

of age and older.

• Approximately 14% of the 10.8 mi

estimated cancer survivors were d

more than 20 years ago.

In this HINTS Brief, we explore improving health communication with cancer survivo
75 and older to have searched for cancer information.

gender.

How Can This Inform Your Work?

A cancer diagnosis may present the challenge of sorting through

cancer information that is fragmented, uneven, and disparate in

quality. Health communication practitioners can be active

participants in changing the cancer information environment in

order to provide effective support for cancer patients

throughout their cancer journey.

• All cancer survivors show a strong interest in going to their

provider teams for information first, before looking

elsewhere. Provider-patient communication remains

paramount, and should be accessible, compassionate, and

superior.

• There appears to be an education gradient among survivors

who seek out cancer information. Proactive efforts may be

necessary to reach less educated survivors with info

that will support their survivorship.

• The Internet is the first resource for many survivo

Because quality of information remains a key conc

cancer survivors,Web-based cancer information m

accurate and usable.

• NCI cancer information resources:

– NCI’s Cancer Information Service offers online 

Monday through Friday 9 a.m. to 11 p.m. easter

– NCI’s Office of Cancer Survivorship Web site

(http://survivorship.cancer.gov) provides links to 

resources and institutions offering information 

for cancer survivors and their families.

– The Facing Forward: Life after Cancer Treatment pub

series is available online

(http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/ocs/ff_series.ht

About HINTS

http://hints.cancer.gov

The National Cancer Institute (NCI) fielded the first Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) in 2002-2

surveying 6,369 Americans. Subsequent surveys followed in 2005 and 2007. HINTS was created to monitor changes 

rapidly-evolving field of health communication.The survey data can be used to understand how adults 18 years and 

different communication channels to obtain health information for themselves and their loved ones, and to create m

effective health communication strategies across populations.

HINTS Briefs provide a snapshot of noteworthy, data-driven research findings.They introduce population-level estima

specific questions in the survey and summarize significant research findings that are a result of analyzing how age, race

influence specific outcomes. Many Briefs summarize research findings from recent peer-reviewed journal articles usin

For More Information on Cancer

• Call the NCI Cancer Information Service at 1-800-4-CANCER

(1-800-422-6237)

• Visit http://cancer.gov 

• Order NCI publications at https://cissecure.nci.nih.gov/ncipubs/

References Used in This HINTS 

Hesse BW, Arora NK, Beckjord EB, Finney Rutten LJ. Info

for cancer survivors. Cancer 2008 Jun; 112(11):2529-40.

NCI’s Office of Cancer Survivorship: http://survivorship.c

Hewitt ME, Ganz PA. From cancer patient to cancer survivor 

an American Society of Clinical Oncology and Institute of Med

Washington, D.C.: National Academies Press; 2006. 190 p

June 2008