U.S. DEPARTMENT 

OF HEALTH AND 

HUMAN SERVICES

National Institutes 

of Health

Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences

Cancer Communication 

Health Information National Trends Survey 

2003 and 2005

National Cancer Institute
Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences

Robert Croyle, Ph.D. 

Director, Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA

Behavioral Research Program

Richard P. Moser, Ph.D. 

HINTS Data Coordinator, Research Psychologist, Behavioral Research Program, National Cancer 

Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA

Health Communication and Informatics Research 

Branch

Bradford Hesse, Ph.D. 

HINTS Program Director, Chief, Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA

Lila J. Finney Rutten, Ph.D., M.P.H.

HINTS Research Coordinator, Behavioral Scientist, Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA

Ellen Burke Beckjord, Ph.D., M.P.H. 

Cancer Prevention Fellow, Health Communication and Informatics Research Branch, National 

Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD, USA

Individual Acknowledgements: 

Planning and Production of the HINTS Report

Neeraj Arora, Ph.D.

Audie Atienza, Ph.D.

Erik Augustson, Ph.D.

Nancy Breen, Ph.D.

William Davis, Ph.D.

Paul Han, M.D., Ph.D.

Robert Hornik, Ph.D.

Sarah Kobrin, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Stephen Marcus, Ph.D.

Grant Martin, M.S.

Helen Meissner, Ph.D.

David Nelson, M.D., M.P.H.

Wendy Nelson, Ph.D.

Linda Pickle, Ph.D.

Barbara Rimer, Dr. P.H.

Mary Schwarz, B.A.

Linda Squiers, Ph.D.

David Stinchcomb, M.A., M.S.

Helen Sullivan, Ph.D., M.P.H.

Stephen Taplin, M.D.

Vetta Sanders Thompson, Ph.D., 

M.P.H.

Lindsey Volckmann, B.A.

K. “Vish” Viswanath, Ph.D.

Gordon Willis, Ph.D.

Amy Yaroch, Ph.D.

Westat Contract Numbers

HINTS 2005: NO2-PC-35023

HINTS 2003: NO2-PC-15003
Cancer Communication 

Health Information National Trends Survey 

2003 and 2005

Division of Cancer Control and Population Sciences
‘‘

‘‘ We began HINTS to fill a huge void in our understanding of the 

information environment in which the public, patients and people who 

care about cancer exist. Information is available from more sources than 

ever before. Thus, it is more important than ever before to understand 

how people get information about cancer and how they are affected by 

the information they find. HINTS is important for people at the NCI, 

but also for many audiences, including researchers, voluntary health 

organizations, advocates and other government agencies that develop and 

disseminate cancer information.

—Barbara K. Rimer, Dr PH, Dean

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill

Former Director, DCCPS, NCI

Former Chair, National Cancer Advisory Board
Contents

5 Abstract

6 Introduction

8 Methods

11 Results

72 Conclusions

74 References

76 List of Tables

77 List of Figures

78 List of Maps
How to Use This Report

Content: 

The contents of this report were developed with guidance from health communication researchers and public health professionals. The content’s purpose is twofold: to offer a snapshot at two 

different points in time of how the American public (18 years and older) is responding to changes 

in the health information environment, and to offer a suggestive look at how the public responds 

within that environment to questions about cancer prevention, diagnosis, and treatment. 

Audience: 

This report was designed with two primary audiences in mind. It is intended for use by health 

communication researchers who wish to use descriptive findings to generate new hypotheses 

for studying health communication and its influence on cancer-related knowledge, attitudes, and 

behaviors. It is also intended for use by trained health communication professionals as a complement to other sources of surveillance data which help steer strategic planning efforts. 

Purpose: 

This report is not intended to describe a comprehensive picture of the health information environment at these two points in time, nor is it intended to offer irrefutable evidence of causal 

relationships that are best studied under the controlled environment of the laboratory. Rather, the 

snapshots presented herein are intended to offer “hints” of where the opportunities exist to make 

a difference in population health through communication-related research and intervention.

Suggested Citation: 

Rutten L.F., Moser R.P., Beckjord E.B., Hesse B.W., Croyle R.T. (2007) Cancer Communication: Health Information National Trends Survey. Washington, D.C.: National Cancer Institute. 

NIH Pub. No. 07-6214 
5

Abstract

Objectives

This report summarizes data from the 2003 and 2005 Health Information National Trends Survey 

(HINTS) on health communication and cancer communication, including an examination of the 

American public’s:

•	 Media exposure

•	 Exposure to health information

•	 Internet usage for health

•	 Information seeking about cancer

•	 Perceptions of barriers to cancer information seeking

•	 Evaluation of information efficacy, recognition, and use of cancer information sources

•	 Cancer knowledge

The descriptive data summarized in this document are intended to inform public health practitioners of current trends in cancer communication and provide health researchers with a foundation 

for exploring and conducting research using HINTS data.

Source of Data

Data for this report are from HINTS 2003 and HINTS 2005. HINTS is a cross-sectional health 

communication survey of the U.S. civilian, noninstitutionalized, adult population. The primary objective of the HINTS survey is to assess trends in health information usage over time and provide 

data for conducting fundamental research to assess the basic relationships among cancer-related 

communication, knowledge, attitudes, and behavior at the population level.

Principal Results

Population estimates of key health communication and cancer communication constructs from 

HINTS 2003 and 2005 are summarized in tabular, graphic, and geographic form. These results 

are highlighted in the text and describe estimates of media exposure, Internet usage for health 

information, cancer-related information seeking, sources of cancer information, trust in sources of 

cancer information, experiences with cancer information seeking, and cancer-related knowledge. 

Keywords: cancer communication, health communication, cancer information, health behavior
6

HINTS is a national health communication survey 

conducted biennially by the National Cancer Institute 

(NCI), which has the vital mission of developing and 

implementing programs that prevent and reduce the 

incidence of cancer. The task of planning, developing, 

and coordinating research on health communication 

relevant to cancer control falls within the realm of 

the Health Communication and Informatics Research 

Branch (HCIRB), in the Behavioral Research Program 

(BRP) in the Division of Cancer Control 

and Population Sciences (DCCPS) at the NCI. HINTS 

was designed to support the mission of the Branch and 

the Institute by providing a means to systematically 

evaluate the public’s knowledge, attitudes, and behaviors relevant to health communication, which have 

not adequately been studied through other national 

data collection efforts prior to HINTS. HINTS aims 

to assess the public’s use of health information in an 

environment of rapidly changing communication and 

informatics options, and to allow the NCI extramural 

community access to the data for conducting hypothesis-generating research into the relationship between 

health information, knowledge, attitudes, 

and behaviors.

HINTS was conceived during an NCI-sponsored 

risk communication conference in 1998. Attendees 

spanned a range of disciplines including communication, psychology, public health, health education, 

health behavior, journalism, and medicine. Prior risk 

communication research was reviewed and recommendations for future research were made. During this 

conference, attendees discussed the lack of population-level data about health information and health 

communication variables and encouraged the NCI to 

develop a national communication population survey 

to provide baseline and follow-up data on 

the populations’ access to, need for, and use of

cancer information.

This call for the development of a national cancer 

communication survey coincided with NCI launching a set of initiatives aimed at advancing the science 

of cancer control through basic science, surveillance, 

knowledge synthesis, and program delivery. Out of 

this set of initiatives, NCI designated an Extraordinary Opportunity in Cancer Communication in the fiscal year 2001 budget. Identification of cancer communication as an extraordinary opportunity allowed NCI 

to support scientific research to advance the discipline 

of cancer communication. A key component of the 

initiative was HINTS. Building upon the interdisciplinary recommendations of the 1998 risk communication conference, NCI developed a national survey 

to assess trends in health information usage over time 

and to periodically conduct fundamental research to 

assess the basic relationships among cancer-related 

communication, knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. 

The HINTS acronym suggests its purpose: to provide 

important insights (hints) into the health information 

needs and practices of the American public. Prominent 

constructs and resultant item development for HINTS 

were informed by the emerging theories of health 

communication (Glanz, Lewis, & Rimer, 1997), media 

usage (Viswanath & Finnegan, 1996), risk information processing (Croyle & Lerman, 1999; Fischhoff, 

Bostrom, & Quadrel, 1993), diffusion of innovations 

(Rogers, 1995) and behavior change (Weinstein, 

1993). A more detailed discussion of the conceptual 

framework underlying item selection is published 

elsewhere (Nelson et al., 2004).

The HCIRB of the NCI has invested in a number 

of initiatives aimed at improving the ways in which 

the population becomes aware of and adopts cancer 

prevention and control messages. HINTS provides a 

mechanism for a population-level assessment of the 

efficacy of such messages in improving awareness, 

encouraging behavior change and in reducing death 

and suffering due to cancer. 

Introduction

This report summarizes data from the 2003 and 2005 

Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS).
7

NCI with its funded partner, Westat, created the first 

two administrations of what has become an ongoing, 

cross-sectional survey of the U.S. civilian, noninstitutionalized, adult population. The HINTS survey 

strives to use the most scientifically rigorous and 

cutting edge methods of data collection. In 2003 and 

2005, HINTS employed a random digit dialing (RDD) 

approach to obtain a probability sample of telephone 

numbers in the U.S. The HINTS instrument includes 

several established measures from other surveys; furthermore, the items included in HINTS are rigorously 

examined through extensive cognitive testing and field 

testing of the HINTS instruments.

The purpose of funding a national probability survey 

to assess health communication processes was to provide communication researchers, cancer centers, social 

scientists, and state cancer planners with research that 

has been conducted with exacting performance in 

order to minimize errors in coverage, sampling, and 

measurement (Dillman, 2000). The rigor with which 

HINTS has been developed and implemented places 

population scientists and health planners in a more 

effective position for refining the scientific knowledge 

base and planning population-based interventions.

HINTS was developed to assess cancer-relevant 

behavior (e.g., prevention, screening, treatment, etc.) 

in the population in order to evaluate the association 

of key communication constructs with behavioral outcomes and to monitor changes in the rapidly evolving 

field of health communication. To this end, HINTS 

stakes out a middle ground between large-scale epidemiological surveillance and smaller scale, non-nationally representative surveys of health communication. 

HINTS is not intended to be a large-scale epidemiological surveillance tool for health behaviors in the 

population; rather it aims to complement existing 

health surveillance tools, such as the Behavioral Risk 

Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS) and the National 

Health Interview Survey (NHIS). The HINTS instrument includes some key behavioral items adopted 

from BRFSS and NHIS to allow for comparison of 

estimates obtained in HINTS with those obtained from 

the larger samples drawn in BRFSS and NHIS. 

This report summarizes estimates of health communication and cancer communication, including an examination of the American public’s exposure to various 

media, exposure to health information, Internet usage 

for health, information seeking about cancer, perceptions of barriers to cancer information seeking, evaluation of information efficacy, and recognition and 

use of cancer information sources from HINTS 2003 

and HINTS 2005. Estimates presented in this report 

are from health communication, cancer communication, and cancer knowledge items surveyed in HINTS 

2003 and/or HINTS 2005. Some of the items used in 

2003 were repeated in 2005. Estimates are given for 

sociodemographically defined subgroups according 

to age, gender, race/ethnicity, educational attainment, 

and annual household income. These estimates are 

summarized in tabular, graphic, and geographic form. 

The geographic distributions of selected HINTS 2003 

and 2005 items are shown in Geographic Information 

Systems (GIS) maps.
8

Methods

Data Source

Data for this report are from HINTS 2003 and HINTS 

2005. The primary objective of the HINTS survey is 

to assess trends in health information usage over time 

and provide data for conducting fundamental research 

to assess the basic relationships among cancer-related 

communication, knowledge, attitudes, and behavior. 

HINTS is a cross-sectional health communication 

survey of the U.S. civilian, noninstitutionalized,

adult population.

Data Collection Procedures

Data for HINTS 2003 were collected from October 

2002 through April 2003 and the data for HINTS 2005 

were collected from February 2005 through August 

2005. A list-assisted method was used to obtain the 

samples. This method draws a random sample of telephone numbers from all working Abanks@1

 of telephone numbers within the U.S. Only banks with one 

or more working numbers (1+ banks) were sampled. 

Pre-screening was used to eliminate as many business, fax, and cell phone numbers as possible from the 

sample of telephone numbers given that these numbers 

were not intended for inclusion in the sampled banks. 

One adult was selected at random per household; for 

households with three or more eligible adults, the 

adult who had the most recent birthday was selected. 

In 2003, non-Hispanic Blacks and Hispanics were 

oversampled. Data were collected by trained interviewers using the BlaiseJ computer-assisted telephone 

interviewing (CATI) system, which automated the 

processes of call scheduling, interviewing, and data 

collection for quality control purposes. To improve 

data quality, ongoing review and editing of data was 

conducted throughout the data collection phase. After 

the English language version of the instrument was 

finalized, a Spanish language version of the questionnaire was developed by a team of bilingual translators 

who translated from English into Spanish first, and 

then back-translated from Spanish to English as a 

quality control check. 

Estimation Procedures

Sampling weights and replicate sampling weights 

were assigned to every sampled adult who completed 

the HINTS questionnaire. The nationally-representative estimates in this report were produced using these 

weights. All standard errors for these estimates were 

produced utilizing the jackknife variance estimation 

technique. This technique was compatible with the 

complex sample design and weighting procedures 

used for HINTS. Further documentation of the sampling plan and sample weights for HINTS 2003 and 

2005 have been published elsewhere (Nelson et al., 

2004; HINTS 2003 and HINTS 2005 Final Report, 

http://cancercontrol.cancer.gov/hints/index.jsp). 

Limitations of Data

Cross-sectional Data

Since HINTS is a cross-sectional survey, it is not 

possible to assess change over time at the level of the 

individual. However, the biennial administration of 

HINTS does allow for examination of trends over time 

at the population level. 

Response Rates

The final response rate for the HINTS 2003 household screener was 55% and the final response rate for 

extended interview was 62.8%. In 2005, these numbers were somewhat lower (screener 34.0%, extended 

61.3%). These rates are comparable to other national 

telephone surveys (Nelson, Powell-Griner, Town, & 

Kovar, 2003) and reflect a trend in survey research (de 

Leeuw & de Heer, 2002; Goyder, Warriner, & Miller, 

2002). Low response rates that reflect systematic differences between those who respond and those who 

do not may limit the generalizability of the results to 

populations represented by responders. Non-response 

analyses of the HINTS 2005 data are under way to 

assess the extent to which low response rates have 

contributed to response bias. Furthermore, future itera1

 Abanks@ are groupings of telephone numbers based on the first five digits available for customer assignment; 

the Abanks@ for HINTS were obtained from a vendor that supplies telephone numbers for sample surveys.
9

tions of the HINTS survey will explore design options 

and methodological approaches that may result in improved response rates. HINTS 2007, which is currently under development, will utilize a mixed-mode data 

collection method using dual sampling frames. An 

RDD telephone survey as well as a mailed questionnaire will be implemented. With declining response 

rates in telephone surveys, it is crucial that alternative 

methodological approaches be explored.

Estimation Error

The size of samples drawn from HINTS does not 

support the calculation of population estimates with 

the degree of accuracy found in larger epidemiological health surveys such as the BRFSS or NHIS. The 

sample sizes drawn for BRFSS and NHIS allow for 

the generation of population estimates with a small 

degree of error, whereas the degree of error associated 

with estimates from HINTS is somewhat larger due to 

the smaller sample size.

Strengths of HINTS Data

HINTS is unique among other national survey efforts 

in its surveillance of health communication constructs 

in the population. HINTS is the first general population survey designed to provide researchers with a 

continuing source of surveillance data from which to 

compare trends in health information usage over time. 

Cancer-relevant communication has been shown to 

play a key role in the reduction of cancer burden (Hiatt & Rimer, 1999; Viswanath, 2005). For example, 

information seeking has been shown to be important 

in effective coping, stress reduction, improved understanding of the cancer disease process, and social support (see van Der Molen, 2003 for review). Furthermore, the complexity of cancer-related information 

about prevention, early detection, treatment, recovery, 

and end-of-life challenges the public to remain abreast 

of the rapidly growing scientific and clinical understanding of this disease. These findings, coupled with 

the recent “explosion” of available cancer-related information through various media including television 

coverage, print coverage, and the Internet (Viswanath, 

2005) underscore the important contribution of the 

HINTS survey. HINTS provides a means to systematically evaluate the public’s knowledge, attitudes, and 

behaviors relevant to health communication, which 

have not adequately been studied through other nationally representative data collection efforts (Nelson 

et al., 2004). 

Further Information 

about HINTS

The latest updates on HINTS can be obtained from the 

HINTS Web site: http://hints.cancer.gov

Health Information National Trends Survey (HINTS) 

Web site (http://hints.cancer.gov)

‘‘

‘‘ The updated website 

reflects NCI’s 

commitment to public 

data sharing by making 

the science of cancer 

communication easily 

accessible to multiple 

audiences.

—Robert Croyle, PhD 

National Cancer 

Institute
10

The HINTS Web site provides users with easily-accessible and timely information to support research and 

program planning. The site facilitates learning about 

HINTS, provides a mechanism for viewing HINTS 

findings, and provides the necessary tools for conducting research using HINTS data. Features include:

Learn about HINTS: The HINTS site summarizes the 

key aims of the HINTS survey and describes how the 

data are used. In addition, the site archives prior NCI 

presentations to provide background to the survey and 

the analytic methodologies appropriate for nationally 

weighted probability samples. The site also summarizes the schedule of events related to the HINTS survey.

View HINTS Findings: The HINTS Web site provides 

survey data in a customized, searchable format that 

allows visitors to retrieve summarized weighted and 

unweighted data in a variety of tabular or graphical 

formats. Specifically, the Web site facilitates examination of HINTS findings through this mechanism, 

which allows users to examine HINTS results for each 

survey item in tabular and 

graphic form. 

Conduct HINTS Research: The interactive HINTS 

Web site allows public health professionals and 

scientists to access the HINTS data and related documents. The Web site features downloadable public-use 

data and associated documentation in both SAS® and 

SPSS® formats. Prior HINTS instruments and related 

survey materials including sampling plans, and survey 

implementation documentation are also available. 

Instructions for using HINTS data are also included 

on the site. Prior publications and presentations of 

HINTS data also are documented.

Data Summaries: Summary descriptions of HINTS 

data are available at the Web site including electronic 

HINTS brochures, fact sheets, and HINTS Briefs that 

highlight findings from the HINTS data. These materials summarize key findings for HINTS analyses and 

document presentations and publications that have 

used HINTS data. 

HINTS Briefs have featured such topics as population 

knowledge of human papilloma virus (HPV), cancer 

screening, and physical activity.

HINTS Electronic Codebook – Graphic Output 

(Bar Chart)

HINTS Electronic Codebook – Graphic Output 

(Pie Chart)

HINTS Electronic Codebook – Tabular Output
11

Results

Analysis

To account for the multistage sample design of 

HINTS, SUDAAN was used to calculate population 

estimates and confidence intervals (CIs). Estimates 

were weighted using sample weights to produce 

nationally-representative values for the adult, non-institutionalized population of the United States. Every 

sampled adult who completed a questionnaire in the 

HINTS received a final sample weight. These sample 

weights were used in aggregating survey questionnaire answers for the purpose of computing nationally 

representative estimates.

A CI for a population parameter is the interval between two numbers with an associated probability 

generated from a random sample of the underlying 

population. If repeated samples were drawn and the 

CI recalculated for each sample according to the same 

method, a proportion of the CIs would contain the 

population parameter.

For additional information about the weighting 

methods used with HINTS data, see the HINTS Final 

Report, Chapter 3. 

OVERVIEW

This section provides brief, bulleted summaries highlighting top level estimates summarized in tabular, graphic, and geographic form.

Table 1 Sociodemographic Characteristics

Counts Weighted Percentages and Confidence Intervals

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

Total 6369 5586 100.0 100.0

 Gender

Male 2521 1929 48.1 (48.0, 48.2) 48.1 (48.1, 48.1)

Female 3848 3657 51.9 (51.8, 52.0) 51.9 (51.9, 51.9)

 Age Group 

18-34 1655 1037 31.2 (30.8, 31.6) 31.0 (30.7, 31.4)

35-49 1954 1490 31.0 (30.7, 31.4) 30.1 (29.7, 30.5)

50-64 1492 1522 21.5 (21.1, 21.9) 22.8 (22.5, 23.1)

65-79 943 1122 12.9 (12.4, 13.3) 12.6 (12.2, 13.0)

80+ 299 397 3.4 (3.1, 3.8) 3.5 (3.1, 3.9)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 4276 4103 71.8 (70.9, 72.6) 69.9 (68.5, 71.2)

Black, non-Hispanic 716 438 10.5 (10.1, 10.9) 10.0 (9.1, 11.0)

Hispanic 764 496 11.7 (11.4, 12.0) 13.0 (12.0, 14.0)

Non-Hispanic Other 312 299 6.0 (5.3, 6.8) 7.1 (6.1, 8.4)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 1709 1307 29.1 (27.6, 30.6) 25.8 (24.0, 27.7)

$25,000 to < $50,000 1745 1217 30.7 (29.0, 32.5) 24.9 (23.0, 26.8)

$50,000 to < $75,000 955 924 17.4 (16.3, 18.6) 21.5 (19.6, 23.5)

$75,000 or more 1214 1150 22.7 (21.6, 24.0) 27.8 (25.8, 29.8)

 Education 

Less than High School 747 687 16.9 (16.6, 17.2) 14.5 (13.9, 15.1)

High School Graduate 1828 1447 32.0 (31.6, 32.3) 29.9 (29.0, 30.8)

Some College 1637 1545 26.8 (26.5, 27.1) 32.2 (31.1, 33.2)

College Graduate or Beyond 1927 1696 24.3 (24.0, 24.6) 23.5 (23.0, 23.9)
12

Smoothed continuous-surface (isopleth) maps were 

used to visualize regional geographic variation in a 

‘weather-map’ fashion. These maps used weighted estimates and employed a “head-banging” algorithm that 

borrows information from neighboring states for those 

with relatively small sample sizes (for more information see: http://srab.cancer.gov/headbang/). 

Note: Alaska and Hawaii are not included in the resulting maps because they are not contiguous neighbors of other states.

These maps are used to provide visual data for possible geographic relationships with HINTS cancer-related knowledge variables and also media exposure and 

usage to inform potential health interventions. Another 

potential use of the maps is to generate hypotheses, 

perhaps by examining the geographic distribution of 

HINTS data with other demographic data (e.g., level 

of education) found on the Census data site (see: 

http://factfinder.census.gov). 

The maps are not intended to provide specific statelevel estimates of HINTS variables due to instability 

in some state values from relatively small sample 

sizes. All analyses reported are intended to be purely 

exploratory and descriptive in nature and are not intended to test hypotheses. 

The results presented are organized into the following 

three main content areas: 1) Health Communication; 

2) Cancer Communication; and 3) Cancer Knowledge. 

Sample Characteristics 

Demographics (HINTS 2003 and HINTS 2005)

•	 Table 1 on page 11 summarizes the HINTS 2003

(n=6369) and HINTS 2005 (n=5586) samples in 

terms of sex, age, race/ethnicity, income, 

and education.

HEALTH COMMUNICATION

This section describes estimates of media exposure 

and Internet use for health from HINTS 2003 

and 2005.

Media Exposure 

Exposure to Television, Radio, and Newspaper 

(2003 and 2005) 

Estimates of average exposure to television, radio, 

and newspaper for 2003 and 2005 are summarized in 

Figure 1.

Television

•	 Hours spent watching television per weekday were

similar in both 2003 (3.2 hours/day) and 2005 (3.1 

hours/day).

Radio

•	 Hours spent listening to the radio per weekday were

similar in both 2003 (2.5 hours/day) and 2005 (2.7 

hours/day).

Newspaper

•	 Days spent reading the newspaper per week were

similar in both 2003 (3.4 days/week) and 2005 (3.7 

days/week).

Figure 1 Exposure to Television, Radio, and Newspaper (2003 and 2005)

On a typical weekday, about how many hours do you watch TV 

(listen to the radio)? In the past seven days, how many days did 

you read a newspaper?

4

3.5

3

2.5

2

1.5

1

.5

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n TV (hours/day) n Radio (hours/day) n Newspaper (days/week) Average Time
Figure 2 Using the Internet for Health 

(2003 and 2005)

In the past 12 months, have you done the following things while 

using the Internet?

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n Look for Medical Information for Self 

n Look for Medical Information for Someone Else 

n Buy Medicine or Vitamins 

n Participate in On-Line Support Group 

n Communicate with Healthcare Professional

13

Internet Usage for Health

Using the Internet for Health (2003 and 2005)

Estimates of using the Internet for health-related reasons in 2003 and 2005 are summarized in Figure 2.

Look for Medical Information on Internet for Self 

•	 In 2003, 50.7% of respondents reported looking for

health or medical information on the Internet for 

themselves; in 2005, 58.4% of respondents reported 

looking for health or medical information on the 

Internet for themselves.

Look for Medical Information on Internet for Others

•	 In 2003, 45.8% of respondents reported looking for

health or medical information on the Internet for 

others; in 2005, 59.5% of respondents reported looking for health or medical information on the Internet 

for others.

Buy Medicine or Vitamins Online

•	 In 2003, 9.1% of respondents reported buying medicine or vitamins online; in 2005 12.8% 

of respondents reported buying medicine or vitamins online

Participate in Online Support Groups

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported participation in online support groups were the same in 

2003 (3.9%) and 2005 (3.9%).

Communicate with Doctor or Doctor’s Office via

the Internet

•	 In 2003, 7.0% of respondents reported online communication with a doctor or doctor’s office; in 2005, 

10.0% of respondents reported online communication with a doctor or doctor’s office.

‘‘

‘‘ The survey is not only a 

surveillance tool, but can be 

used to study relationships 

of how knowledge about 

health care is dependent on 

channels of communication.

—Bradford Hesse, PhD 

National Cancer Institute

% Respondents
14

Table 2 Typical Exposure to TV, Radio, and Newspaper, by Sociodemographics

Weighted Averages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Typical Exposure to Media Sources

TV (Hrs per Weekday) Radio (Hrs per Weekday) 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

 % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 3.2 (3.1, 3.2) 3.1 (3.0, 3.2) 2.5 (2.4, 2.6) 2.7 (2.6, 2.8) 

 Gender 

Male 3.0 (2.9, 3.1) 3.0 (2.9, 3.2) 2.6 (2.5, 2.7) 2.8 (2.6, 3.0) 

Female 3.3 (3.2, 3.4) 3.2 (3.0, 3.3) 2.4 (2.3, 2.5) 2.6 (2.4, 2.7) 

 Age Group 

18-34 3.0 (2.8, 3.1) 2.9 (2.7, 3.2) 3.0 (2.8, 3.2) 2.8 (2.6, 3.0) 

35-49 2.8 (2.7, 3.0) 2.7 (2.6, 2.8) 2.5 (2.4, 2.7) 3.0 (2.8, 3.2) 

50-64 3.3 (3.1, 3.4) 3.4 (3.2, 3.6) 2.1 (2.0, 2.3) 2.4 (2.2, 2.7) 

65-79 4.0 (3.7, 4.2) 3.6 (3.5, 3.8) 1.9 (1.7, 2.1) 2.2 (2.0, 2.5) 

80+ 3.9 (3.6, 4.2) 3.9 (3.6, 4.3) 1.8 (1.5, 2.1) 2.4 (1.8, 2.9) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 3.0 (2.9, 3.1) 2.9 (2.8, 3.0) 2.3 (2.3, 2.4) 2.6 (2.5, 2.7) 

Black, non-Hispanic 4.1 (3.9, 4.4) 4.5 (4.0, 5.0) 2.8 (2.5, 3.2) 3.0 (2.5, 3.6) 

Hispanic 3.1 (2.8, 3.3) 2.8 (2.5, 3.0) 2.5 (2.3, 2.8) 2.5 (2.2, 2.9) 

Non-Hispanic Other 3.5 (2.7, 4.2) 3.7 (3.0, 4.3) 2.9 (2.4, 3.4) 3.2 (2.5, 3.9) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 3.9 (3.7, 4.1) 3.8 (3.6, 4.1) 2.5 (2.2, 2.7) 2.8 (2.5, 3.1) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 3.2 (3.0, 3.3) 3.1 (2.9, 3.2) 2.7 (2.6, 2.9) 2.8 (2.5, 3.1) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 2.7 (2.5, 2.8) 3.0 (2.7, 3.2) 2.5 (2.3, 2.8) 2.8 (2.6, 3.1) 

$75,000 or more 2.4 (2.3, 2.5) 2.4 (2.3, 2.6) 2.1 (2.0, 2.3) 2.5 (2.2, 2.7) 

 Education 

Less than High School 3.7 (3.5, 4.0) 3.9 (3.6, 4.3) 2.5 (2.2, 2.8) 3.0 (2.7, 3.3) 

High School Graduate 3.5 (3.4, 3.7) 3.4 (3.2, 3.5) 2.7 (2.5, 2.8) 3.0 (2.7, 3.3) 

Some College 3.1 (2.9, 3.2) 3.1 (2.9, 3.2) 2.6 (2.5, 2.8) 2.7 (2.5, 2.9) 

College Graduate or Beyond 2.3 (2.3, 2.4) 2.3 (2.2, 2.4) 1.9 (1.8, 2.0) 2.1 (2.0, 2.2) 
Estimates of media 

exposure suggest that use 

of media source differs 

by sociodemographic 

variables; in particular, 

education.

15

Newspaper (Days per Week)

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI)

3.4 (3.3, 3.5) 3.7 (3.5, 3.8)

3.6 (3.4, 3.7) 3.7 (3.5, 3.9)

3.3 (3.2, 3.4) 3.6 (3.5, 3.7)

2.5 (2.3, 2.6) 2.3 (2.0, 2.5)

3.1 (3.0, 3.3) 3.4 (3.2, 3.6)

4.0 (3.9, 4.2) 4.4 (4.2, 4.6)

4.9 (4.7, 5.2) 5.3 (5.1, 5.6)

4.8 (4.4, 5.2) 5.6 (5.3, 6.0)

3.7 (3.6, 3.8) 4.0 (3.8, 4.1)

3.1 (2.9, 3.4) 3.2 (2.7, 3.6)

2.0 (1.7, 2.2) 2.3 (2.0, 2.6)

2.9 (2.5, 3.2) 3.7 (3.1, 4.3)

2.8 (2.6, 3.0) 3.2 (2.9, 3.4)

3.4 (3.3, 3.6) 3.8 (3.6, 4.1)

3.9 (3.7, 4.1) 3.7 (3.4, 4.0)

3.9 (3.8, 4.1) 3.9 (3.7, 4.1)

2.2 (1.9, 2.4) 3.0 (2.7, 3.3)

3.5 (3.3, 3.6) 3.8 (3.5, 4.1)

3.6 (3.4, 3.8) 3.5 (3.3, 3.7)

4.0 (3.9, 4.2) 4.1 (3.9, 4.3)
16

Table 3 Internet Health Information Seeking and Communication, by Sociodemographics

Weighted Averages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Health Information Seeking (Internet Users Only) 

Did You Use the Internet to...

Look for Medical Information for Self Look for Medical Information for Other 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 50.7 (48.8, 52.6) 58.4 (55.6, 61.2) 45.8 (43.8, 47.9) 59.5 (57.3, 61.6) 

 Gender 

Male 43.0 (40.1, 46.1) 50.8 (46.2, 55.3) 39.4 (36.0, 42.9) 52.7 (48.7, 56.6) 

Female 58.1 (55.4, 60.8) 65.5 (61.8, 69.1) 52.2 (49.6, 54.7) 65.8 (63.0, 68.5) 

 Age Group 

18-34 52.9 (50.2, 55.5) 56.6 (51.4, 61.7) 44.3 (40.9, 47.8) 56.4 (51.1, 61.5) 

35-49 50.1 (46.7, 53.5) 60.4 (56.5, 64.2) 50.4 (46.8, 54.0) 66.6 (63.1, 69.9) 

50-64 51.6 (47.5, 55.7) 61.0 (56.9, 64.9) 44.7 (40.4, 49.1) 59.3 (55.2, 63.3) 

65-79 39.0 (33.4, 45.0) 51.7 (44.0, 59.3) 33.3 (27.6, 39.6) 45.4 (39.6, 51.3) 

80+ 19.4 (8.4, 38.7) 35.8 (17.6, 59.3) 13.7 (4.9, 32.8) 20.1 (8.4, 40.6) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 52.0 (49.8, 54.2) 59.5 (56.8, 62.1) 48.1 (45.9, 50.2) 61.3 (58.6, 63.8) 

Black, non-Hispanic 47.5 (41.3, 53.8) 53.3 (43.0, 63.3) 36.3 (29.5, 43.8) 49.4 (39.0, 60.0) 

Hispanic 42.8 (35.8, 50.0) 53.5 (43.1, 63.7) 40.0 (33.4, 47.0) 55.1 (45.1, 64.7) 

Non-Hispanic Other 54.1 (44.4, 63.5) 62.7 (50.4, 73.5) 50.5 (41.8, 59.3) 61.7 (49.2, 72.8) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 45.5 (39.8, 51.2) 60.4 (53.7, 66.7) 39.5 (34.7, 44.5) 62.3 (55.1, 69.0) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 48.6 (44.4, 52.8) 53.5 (47.5, 59.3) 41.9 (38.6, 45.3) 55.2 (49.2, 61.1) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 54.2 (50.3, 58.1) 55.6 (49.8, 61.4) 49.6 (45.1, 54.1) 59.9 (55.2, 64.4) 

$75,000 or more 55.5 (52.1, 58.9) 64.3 (59.6, 68.7) 54.3 (50.9, 57.7) 65.4 (60.9, 69.7) 

 Education 

Less than High School 37.9 (29.9, 46.6) 33.8 (21.6, 48.6) 28.3 (19.1, 39.8) 44.7 (31.1, 59.1) 

High School Graduate 42.8 (39.3, 46.3) 49.6 (43.9, 55.2) 37.9 (35.0, 40.8) 50.5 (45.6, 55.5) 

Some College 52.1 (48.9, 55.2) 58.2 (53.2, 63.1) 46.8 (43.3, 50.2) 59.5 (54.7, 64.2) 

College Graduate or Beyond 58.5 (55.4, 61.5) 69.0 (65.1, 72.6) 56.1 (53.5, 58.7) 68.3 (64.8, 71.6) 
17

Buy Medicine or Vitamins Participate in Online Support Group Communicate with Doctor or Doctor’s Office

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

9.1 (8.0, 10.3) 12.8 (11.6, 14.1) 3.9 (3.0, 5.1) 3.9 (3.2, 4.7) 7.0 (6.1, 8.0) 9.6 (8.3, 11.1)

10.0 (8.4, 11.9) 11.7 (9.6, 14.1) 2.6 (1.7, 3.8) 3.2 (2.1, 4.8) 7.6 (6.2, 9.4) 7.9 (6.0, 10.2)

8.2 (7.2, 9.3) 13.8 (12.1, 15.7) 5.3 (4.0, 7.0) 4.6 (3.8, 5.5) 6.4 (5.5, 7.4) 11.2 (9.5, 13.2)

5.5 (4.2, 7.1) 7.2 (5.7, 9.0) 4.1 (2.9, 5.7) 3.1 (1.9, 5.0) 6.4 (4.9, 8.2) 10.2 (7.3, 14.1)

9.1 (7.4, 11.1) 14.7 (12.0, 17.8) 4.1 (2.7, 6.1) 4.9 (3.6, 6.7) 6.8 (5.4, 8.4) 9.3 (7.3, 11.8)

15.4 (12.9, 18.2) 18.8 (15.9, 22.0) 3.8 (2.6, 5.7) 4.4 (3.2, 5.9) 9.3 (7.3, 11.9) 10.1 (7.7, 13.1)

11.9 (7.6, 18.1) 16.5 (12.2, 22.1) 2.5 (1.1, 5.8) 2.5 (1.1, 5.6) 4.6 (2.7, 7.6) 6.9 (4.5, 10.5)

9.0 (2.5, 27.1) 4.2 (0.8, 18.3) 5.2 (0.6, 32.2) 0.0 (0.0, 0.0) 10.7 (2.3, 38.1) 2.7 (0.3, 18.4)

9.8 (8.5, 11.4) 13.2 (11.7, 14.9) 4.0 (2.9, 5.4) 3.7 (2.9, 4.8) 7.3 (6.2, 8.5) 9.5 (7.8, 11.5)

5.2 (3.1, 8.4) 12.1 (7.6, 18.6) 4.8 (2.9, 7.7) 5.3 (2.0, 13.3) 6.1 (3.9, 9.7) 11.3 (6.6, 18.9)

6.6 (4.3, 10.0) 8.7 (4.7, 15.4) 2.1 (0.9, 4.7) 3.1 (1.1, 8.0) 6.4 (3.8, 10.7) 5.9 (2.6, 13.2)

11.6 (7.6, 17.4) 12.7 (8.0, 19.7) 5.8 (2.9, 11.4) 4.3 (1.7, 10.3) 7.2 (3.9, 13.0) 13.5 (8.4, 21.0)

5.6 (3.8, 8.1) 10.2 (7.1, 14.4) 6.2 (3.9, 9.8) 7.2 (3.8, 13.1) 7.9 (5.5, 11.3) 7.6 (5.0, 11.3)

7.9 (6.4, 9.6) 13.4 (10.3, 17.4) 4.7 (3.0, 7.2) 4.5 (3.0, 6.8) 5.9 (4.5, 7.7) 8.4 (6.1, 11.5)

10.2 (7.3, 14.0) 16.5 (12.8, 21.0) 4.0 (2.7, 5.9) 3.5 (2.2, 5.5) 6.5 (4.7, 9.0) 8.4 (5.9, 11.8)

12.5 (10.6, 14.7) 12.0 (9.7, 14.7) 2.4 (1.5, 3.8) 3.3 (2.3, 4.5) 9.2 (7.3, 11.5) 12.8 (9.7, 16.6)

2.4 (0.9, 6.8) 7.8 (3.4, 17.0) 4.2 (1.5, 11.5) 2.3 (0.4, 11.6) 3.2 (1.2, 8.0) 8.3 (3.1, 20.3)

8.1 (5.8, 11.2) 12.0 (9.3, 15.5) 3.5 (2.4, 5.1) 3.6 (2.1, 6.1) 3.5 (2.5, 4.9) 6.6 (4.6, 9.5)

9.7 (8.0, 11.8) 12.4 (10.3, 15.0) 5.0 (3.2, 7.9) 4.1 (2.8, 6.1) 7.3 (5.7, 9.2) 10.1 (7.6, 13.3)

11.1 (9.6, 12.8) 14.5 (12.7, 16.5) 3.3 (2.4, 4.6) 4.3 (3.3, 5.4) 10.3 (8.7, 12.1) 11.7 (10.0, 13.6)
18

CANCER COMMUNICATION

This section summarizes estimates of cancer information seeking, information sources, trust in information sources, and confidence in one’s ability to obtain 

information.

Information Seeking About Cancer 

Cancer Information Seeking (2003 and 2005) 

Estimates of looking for cancer-related information in 

2003 and 2005 are summarized in Figure 3.

Looked for Information about Cancer

•	 In 2003, 44.9% of respondents reported looking for

cancer information for themselves; in 2005, 48.7% 

of respondents reported looking for cancer information for themselves.

Someone Else Looked for Cancer Information for You

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported that

someone else looked for cancer information for 

them was fairly similar in 2003 (16.8%) and 

2005 (16.6%).

Average Time (in days) Since Last Search for 

Cancer Information

•	 In 2003, 541 days was the average time since last

search for cancer information; this average was 

639.7 in 2005.

Sources of Cancer Information: Use, Preference, Awareness 

Sources of Cancer Information (2003 and 2005)

Estimates of the sources that Americans turn to for 

cancer information in 2003 and 2005 are summarized 

in Figure 4.

Printed Material

•	 In 2003, 27.9% of respondents reported printed

material as the source for their most recent search for 

cancer information; in 2005, 15.5% of respondents 

reported printed material as the source for their most 

recent search for cancer information.

Interpersonal Source

•	 In 2003, 2.9% of respondents reported interpersonal

sources (e.g., friends, coworkers) as the source for 

their most recent search for cancer information; in 

Figure 3 Cancer Information Seeking 

(2003 and 2005)

Have you ever looked for information about cancer from 

any source?

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n Sought Cancer Information for Self 

n Sought Cancer Information for Other % of Respondents Who Sought Information

Figure 4 Actual Sources of Cancer Information 

(2003 and 2005)

The most recent time you wanted information on cancer, where 

did you go first?

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n Printed Material n Interpersonal Source n Health Care Provider 

n Information Specialist n Internet n Other % of Respondents Reporting Use as First Source
19

2005, 5.0% of respondents reported interpersonal 

sources as the source for their most recent search for 

cancer information.

Health Care Provider

•	 In 2003, 10.9% of respondents reported a health care

provider as the source for their most recent search for 

cancer information; in 2005, 23.5% of respondents 

reported a health care provider as the source for their 

most recent search for cancer information.

Information Specialist

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported an

information specialist as the source for their most 

recent search for cancer information was similar in 

2003 (7.2%) and 2005 (7.5%).

Internet

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported the

Internet as the source for their most recent search for 

cancer information was similar in 2003 (48.6%) and 

2005 (47.6%).

Preferred Source for Cancer Information 

(2003 and 2005) 

Estimates of the preferred source for cancer information in 2003 and 2005 are summarized in Figure 5.

Printed Material

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported

printed material as their preferred source of cancer 

information was similar in 2003 (2.9%) and 

2005 (2.8%).

Interpersonal Source

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported an

interpersonal source as their preferred source of 

cancer information was similar in 2003 (4.6%) 

and 2005 (5.6%).

Health Care Provider

•	 In 2003, 49.5% of respondents reported a healthcare professional as their preferred source of cancer 

information; in 2005, 55.0% of respondents reported 

a health care professional as their preferred source 

of cancer information.

Figure 5 Preferred Source for Cancer Information 

(2003 and 2005)

Imagine that you had a strong need to get information about 

cancer. Where would you go first?

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n Printed Material n Interpersonal Source n Health Care Provider 

n Information Specialist n Internet n Other % of Respondents who Would Seek Information from Source First

Data suggest a growing 

disconnect between 

respondents’ actual 

(Internet) and preferred 

(health care professional) 

source of health 

information.
20

Information Specialist

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported an

information specialist as their preferred source of 

cancer information was similar in 2003 (8.1%) and 

2005 (5.6%).

Internet

•	 Overall, there was a significant decrease in the

percentage of respondents who reported the Internet 

as their preferred source of cancer information from 

2003 (34.2%) to 2005 (27.8%).

Surrogate Sources of Cancer Information 

(2003 and 2005) 

Estimates of cancer information seeking by surrogate 

source in 2003 and 2005 are summarized below.

Spouse or Other Family

•	 In 2003, among respondents who indicated that

someone else sought cancer information for them, 

72.5% of respondents identified their spouse or 

other family member as the person who sought cancer information on their behalf; in 2005, 82.2% of 

respondents identified their spouse or other family 

member as the person who sought cancer information on their behalf.

Friend or Co-Worker

•	 In 2003, among respondents who indicated that

someone else sought cancer information for 

them, 21.5% of respondents identified a friend or 

co-worker as the person who sought cancer information on their behalf; in 2005, 15.9% of respondents 

identified a friend or co-worker as 

the person who sought cancer information on 

their behalf.

Figure 6 Surrogate Sources of Cancer Information 

(2003 and 2005)

Not including your doctor or other health care provider, has 

someone else ever looked for information about cancer for you? 

Who was that? [that looked for information about cancer for you?]

90

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n Spouse/Other Family n Friend/Coworker n Information Specialist/Other % of Respondents Reporting that Another Person Sought Information on Their Behalf
21

Information Specialist or Other2

•	 In 2003, among respondents who indicated that

someone else sought cancer information for them, 

6.0% of respondents identified an information 

specialist or other as the person who sought cancer information on their behalf; in 2005, 1.9% of 

respondents identified an information specialist or 

other as the person who sought cancer information 

on their behalf.

Cancer Information Seeking and Usefulness of Information on the Internet 

Looked for Cancer Information on the Internet

•	 In 2003, 20.5% of respondents reported looking for

cancer information on the Internet; in 2005, 28.2% 

of respondents reported looking for cancer information on the Internet.

2

 “Other” refers to all responses not otherwise coded; For HINTS 2003, this category also includes 

the following response category, which was not part of the coding scheme for HINTS 2005: “Cancer Organizations.”

Internet Use for Health Information 

Maps 1 and 2 suggest that there was an increase in 

the use of the Internet to look for health information 

across most of the United States; for example, in the 

Southern and Southeastern parts of the country.

Rating of Information Usefulness among those who 

Sought Cancer Information on the Internet

•	 Ratings of usefulness of cancer information obtained

from Internet were the same in 2003 (average rating 

on a 4 point scale=1.66) and 2005 (average rating on 

a 4 point scale=1.66).

Map 1 Regional Estimates of Internet Use for 

Health Information (2003)

Have You Used the Internet to Look for Health Information for 

Self in Last 12 Months?

HINTS 2003 HC-24

Responded “Yes”

High: 65%

Low: 41%

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.

Map 2 Regional Estimates of Internet Use for 

Health Information (2005)

Have You Used the Internet to Look for Health Information for 

Self in Last 12 Months?

HINTS 2005 HC-24

Responded “Yes”

High: 65%

Low: 41%

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.
22

Awareness of National Cancer Organizations 

(2003 and 2005) 

Estimates of Americans’ awareness of national cancer 

organizations in 2003 and 2005 are summarized in 

Figure 7.

NCI

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported awareness of NCI was similar in 2003 (76.7%) and in 

2005 (76.9%).

NCI’s Cancer Information Service

•	 In 2003, 25.8% of respondents reported awareness

of NCI’s Cancer Information Service; in 2005, 

29.3% of respondents reported awareness of NCI’s 

Cancer Information Service.

1-800-4-Cancer

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported awareness of the 1-800-4-CANCER information number was 

similar in 2003 (19.5%) and 2005 (19.1%).

Trust in Health Information 

Trust in Sources of Information (2003 and 2005)

Estimates of Americans’ trust in various sources of 

information in 2003 and 2005 are summarized in 

Figure 8.

Doctor/Healthcare Professional

•	 In 2003, 62.4% of respondents reported that they

trusted information from their doctor a lot; in 2005, 

(67.2%) of respondents reported that they trusted 

information from their doctor a lot.

Internet

•	 In 2003, 23.9% of respondents reported that they

trusted information from the Internet a lot; in 2005, 

18.9% of respondents reported that they trusted 

information from the Internet a lot.

Figure 8 Trust in Sources of Information 

(2003 and 2005)

How much would you trust information about health or medical 

topics from ____________? Would you say a lot, some, a little, 

or not at all?

75

65

55

45

35

25

15

5 2003 2005

Survey Year

n Health Care Professional n Internet n TV n Family 

n Magazine n Newspaper n Radio % of Respondents who Trust Source “A Lot”

Figure 7 Awareness of National Cancer Organizations (2003 and 2005)

Now, I’m going to read you a list of organizations. Before being 

contacted for this study, had you ever heard of ____________ 

(NCI, Cancer Information Service, 1-800-4-CANCER)?

80

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n NCI n Cancer Information Service 

n 1-800-4-CANCER % Aware
Television

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported that

they trusted information from the television a lot

was similar in 2003 (20.0%) and 2005 (20.8%).

Family

•	 In 2003, 18.9% of respondents reported that they

trusted information from their family a lot; in 2005, 

22.8% of respondents reported that they trusted 

information from their family a lot.

Magazine

•	 In 2003, 15.9% of respondents reported that they

trusted information from magazines a lot; in 2005, 

19.7% of respondents reported that they trusted 

information from magazines a lot.

Newspaper

•	 In 2003, 13.1% of respondents reported that they

trusted information from the newspaper a lot; in 

2005, 18.9% of respondents reported that they 

trusted information from the newspaper a lot.

Radio 

•	 The percentage of respondents who reported that

they trusted information from the radio a lot was 

similar in 2003 (9.9%) and 2005 (12.3%).

Confidence in and Experiences with Information Seeking 

Confidence in Obtaining Cancer Information 

•	 In 2003, 62.6% of respondents indicated that they

were completely or very confident that they could 

obtain needed cancer information; in 2005, 68.1% of 

respondents indicated that they were completely or 

very confident that they could obtain needed cancer 

information.

Health care professionals far surpassed the Internet, print 

media, and family as the number one source of trusted 

health information.

23
24

Experiences with Information Seeking 

(2003 and 2005)

Estimates of experiences with searching for cancer 

information in 2003 and 2005 are summarized in 

Figure 9.

Ratings of Last Cancer Information Search

Took a lot of Effort

•	 In 2003, 48.4% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed with the statement that their last search 

for cancer information took a lot of effort; in 2005, 

37.3% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed 

with the statement that their last search for cancer 

information took a lot of effort.

Felt Frustrated During Search

•	 In 2003, 41.9% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed with the statement that they felt 

frustrated during their last search for cancer information; in 2005, 26.7% of respondents strongly or 

somewhat agreed with the statement that they felt 

frustrated during their last search for cancer information.

Concerned about Information Quality

•	 In 2003, 58.3% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed with the statement that they were 

concerned about information quality during their 

last search for cancer information; in 2005, 47.5% 

of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed with 

the statement that they were concerned about information quality during their last search for cancer 

information.

Difficult-to-Understand Information

•	 In 2003, 37.7% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed with the statement that the information 

they obtained during their last search for cancer 

information was difficult to understand; in 2005, 

23.7% of respondents strongly or somewhat agreed 

with the statement that the information they obtained during their last search for cancer information 

was difficult to understand.

Figure 9 Experiences with Information Seeking 

(2003 and 2005)

Based on the results of your search for information on cancer 

from all sources, how much do you agree or disagree with 

the following statements? Would you say you strongly agree, 

somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, or strongly disagree?

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 2003 2005

Survey Year

n It took a lot of effort 

n Felt frustrated during your search 

n Concerned about the quality of the information 

n Information was hard to understand % of Respondents who “Strongly” or “Somewhat” Agreed

Cancer information seeking in 

2003 and 2005 was associated 

with certain sociodemographic 

characteristics
25

Table 4 Cancer Information Seeking, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals 

Cancer Information Seeking

 

Looked Myself Someone Else Looked

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total 44.9 (43.5, 46.3) 48.7 (46.9, 50.5) 16.8 (15.8, 17.9) 16.6 (15.3, 18.0)

 Gender 

Male 36.1 (33.8, 38.5) 41.5 (38.6, 44.4) 14.4 (12.8, 16.1) 14.3 (12.2, 16.7)

Female 53.1 (51.2, 55.0) 55.4 (53.2, 57.6) 19.0 (17.7, 20.4) 18.8 (17.0, 20.6)

 Age Group 

18-34 43.1 (40.2, 46.1) 43.3 (39.6, 47.2) 14.2 (12.2, 16.5) 12.3 (9.5, 15.9)

35-49 48.1 (45.3, 50.9) 54.4 (50.9, 57.8) 18.2 (16.5, 20.1) 18.0 (15.7, 20.5)

50-64 51.6 (48.8, 54.3) 55.2 (52.6, 57.8) 20.5 (18.0, 23.3) 20.8 (18.2, 23.6)

65-79 34.7 (31.3, 38.2) 42.1 (38.8, 45.5) 15.1 (12.6, 18.0) 17.7 (15.1, 20.6)

80+ 27.3 (22.4, 32.7) 29.6 (23.4, 36.8) 9.3 (6.1, 13.9) 11.7 (7.7, 17.2)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 49.0 (47.3, 50.6) 54.6 (52.4, 56.8) 17.4 (16.1, 18.7) 18.4 (16.7, 20.2)

Black, non-Hispanic 40.8 (35.8, 46.0) 46.9 (39.7, 54.3) 18.1 (14.1, 23.0) 14.6 (10.6, 19.6)

Hispanic 26.5 (23.5, 29.8) 25.1 (20.5, 30.2) 12.4 (9.3, 16.3) 8.3 (5.8, 11.7)

Non-Hispanic Other 46.6 (41.4, 51.9) 49.0 (40.1, 58.0) 18.3 (12.3, 26.2) 17.2 (12.6, 23.0)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 34.8 (31.6, 38.2) 39.5 (36.1, 43.0) 13.4 (11.7, 15.4) 13.7 (11.6, 16.1)

$25,000 to < $50,000 43.6 (40.7, 46.5) 48.2 (44.4, 52.1) 16.9 (14.9, 19.0) 17.9 (14.6, 21.7)

$50,000 to < $75,000 53.3 (49.7, 56.9) 53.9 (49.6, 58.1) 20.1 (17.3, 23.3) 17.2 (14.6, 20.1)

$75,000 or more 58.8 (55.4, 62.2) 60.2 (56.1, 64.1) 20.2 (17.9, 22.7) 18.9 (15.8, 22.5)

 Education 

Less than High School 26.3 (22.5, 30.5) 23.9 (19.9, 28.3) 11.9 (9.3, 15.2) 8.6 (6.7, 10.9)

High School Graduate 37.7 (35.2, 40.3) 43.6 (40.5, 46.8) 15.4 (13.7, 17.2) 16.3 (14.3, 18.5)

Some College 50.8 (48.0, 53.6) 55.7 (51.6, 59.7) 18.4 (16.5, 20.5) 18.5 (15.6, 21.6)

College Graduate or Beyond 62.3 (59.8, 64.8) 64.2 (61.1, 67.2) 20.6 (18.7, 22.5) 19.2 (16.2, 22.7)
26

Table 5 Average Time Since Last Search for Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals 

Time in Days Since Last Search for Cancer Information

Respondents who reported ever seeking cancer information

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

Mean time in Days (95% CI) Mean time in Days (95% CI)

 Total 541.0 (489.0, 593.0) 639.7 (591.3, 688.1)

 Gender 

Male 599.0 (505.5, 692.6) 639.6 (557.1, 722.1)

Female 502.2 (453.2, 551.3) 639.7 (579.6, 699.9)

 Age Group 

18-34 424.7 (361.3, 488.1) 420.3 (354.6, 486.0)

35-49 624.2 (516.2, 732.2) 581.9 (493.3, 670.5)

50-64 548.0 (466.7, 629.2) 760.7 (613.1, 908.2)

65-79 597.4 (452.5, 742.4) 904.2 (740.2, 1068.1)

80+ 619.9 (368.1, 871.7) 1551.1 (906.1, 2196.1)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 554.6 (494.4, 614.7) 659.3 (603.5, 715.0)

Black, non-Hispanic 444.2 (296.6, 591.9) 536.5 (305.6, 767.5)

Hispanic 371.6 (281.6, 461.6) 559.1 (288.6, 829.5)

Non-Hispanic Other 619.8 (407.1, 832.4) 644.5 (449.3, 839.8)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 514.2 (412.4, 616.0) 707.0 (537.5, 876.4)

$25,000 to < $50,000 562.5 (464.3, 660.7) 664.8 (549.0, 780.5)

$50,000 to < $75,000 539.4 (431.6, 647.1) 622.6 (509.4, 735.7)

$75,000 or more 536.6 (438.5, 634.6) 577.5 (486.7, 668.4)

 Education 

Less than High School 556.3 (380.4, 732.2) 634.9 (439.1, 830.7)

High School Graduate 539.9 (455.5, 624.2) 699.3 (567.1, 831.4)

Some College 498.8 (413.5, 584.1) 610.9 (517.2, 704.6)

College Graduate or Beyond 575.3 (489.9, 660.6) 623.4 (548.6, 698.2)
27

HINTS tracks trends in the public’s rapidly 

changing use of new communication technologies 

while charting progress in meeting health 

communication goals.

—David Nelson, MD, MPH 

‘‘

Centers for Disease Control and Prevention

‘‘
28

Table 6 Sources of Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals 

Source for Most Recent Search for Cancer Information

Respondents who reported ever seeking cancer information

Printed Material[1] Interpersonal Source[2] 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 27.9 (25.7, 30.3) 15.5 (14.1, 16.9) 2.9 (2.3, 3.8) 5.0 (4.1, 6.0) 

 Gender 

Male 25.7 (22.3, 29.4) 12.6 (10.2, 15.6) 2.0 (1.2, 3.2) 4.3 (2.8, 6.6) 

Female 29.4 (26.9, 32.0) 17.4 (15.9, 19.1) 3.6 (2.6, 4.8) 5.4 (4.4, 6.7) 

 Age Group 

18-34 18.4 (14.9, 22.5) 11.6 (8.5, 15.5) 2.3 (1.4, 3.8) 4.5 (3.0, 6.6) 

35-49 26.7 (23.2, 30.5) 14.8 (12.2, 17.7) 3.2 (2.1, 5.0) 5.7 (3.8, 8.4) 

50-64 33.6 (29.6, 37.8) 16.3 (13.4, 19.8) 2.7 (1.6, 4.7) 4.3 (2.7, 6.6) 

65-79 42.3 (36.3, 48.5) 21.6 (17.0, 26.9) 3.9 (2.2, 7.0) 5.3 (3.6, 7.9) 

80+ 51.9 (39.3, 64.2) 38.4 (25.2, 53.5) 5.8 (2.3, 13.8) 7.1 (3.7, 13.4) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 26.6 (23.9, 29.4) 14.8 (13.0, 16.8) 2.8 (2.0, 3.8) 4.9 (4.1, 5.9) 

Black, non-Hispanic 38.3 (32.0, 44.9) 14.0 (8.9, 21.4) 1.7 (0.6, 4.6) 6.3 (3.5, 11.1) 

Hispanic 32.7 (25.4, 41.0) 21.6 (14.0, 31.8) 6.6 (3.0, 14.0) 1.7 (0.5, 5.6) 

Non-Hispanic Other 24.1 (17.4, 32.4) 17.2 (10.6, 26.8) 3.2 (1.1, 9.1) 3.6 (1.2, 10.2) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 35.2 (30.1, 40.8) 16.8 (13.5, 20.8) 5.1 (3.1, 8.3) 5.3 (3.4, 8.2) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 30.9 (26.8, 35.4) 16.6 (12.7, 21.3) 3.5 (2.3, 5.4) 5.2 (3.7, 7.3) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 23.4 (19.3, 28.2) 17.5 (13.4, 22.4) 2.0 (0.9, 4.4) 6.1 (4.0, 9.2) 

$75,000 or more 22.0 (18.9, 25.4) 10.9 (8.3, 14.2) 1.8 (1.1, 2.9) 3.0 (1.9, 4.7) 

 Education 

Less than High School 37.3 (28.2, 47.4) 21.1 (15.7, 27.7) 6.5 (3.1, 13.4) 9.0 (4.8, 16.4) 

High School Graduate 30.0 (25.7, 34.7) 16.8 (13.4, 20.9) 2.7 (1.7, 4.4) 3.7 (2.5, 5.5) 

Some College 26.4 (22.6, 30.5) 13.6 (11.1, 16.5) 2.5 (1.5, 4.1) 5.5 (3.9, 7.7) 

College Graduate or Beyond 25.3 (22.4, 28.4) 14.6 (12.4, 17.2) 2.6 (1.8, 3.8) 3.7 (2.7, 5.1) 

[1] For HINTS 2003 and HINTS 2005 this category includes books, brochures, pamphlets, magazines, and newspaper.

[2] For HINTS 2003 includes family, friend/co-worker; for HINTS 2005 includes family, friend/co-worker, and someone with cancer.

[3] For HINTS 2003 includes library, info. phone number, and cancer organizations; for HINTS 2005 includes library 

and info. phone number.
29

Health Care Provider Information Specialist[3]

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

10.9 (9.6, 12.4) 23.5 (21.6, 25.5) 7.2 (6.1, 8.5) 7.5 (6.3, 8.8)

9.7 (7.6, 12.3) 22.1 (19.2, 25.2) 6.4 (4.4, 9.2) 8.1 (5.9, 11.1)

11.6 (10.2, 13.3) 24.5 (22.2, 27.0) 7.7 (6.4, 9.3) 7.1 (5.8, 8.5)

5.6 (4.2, 7.5) 11.0 (8.7, 13.9) 8.5 (6.2, 11.5) 6.3 (4.5, 8.7)

9.9 (7.7, 12.5) 22.3 (18.9, 26.0) 7.0 (5.2, 9.3) 7.1 (5.1, 9.9)

12.6 (9.7, 16.2) 28.9 (25.3, 32.7) 6.0 (4.6, 7.9) 8.7 (6.2, 12.2)

23.8 (17.8, 31.2) 43.2 (37.6, 48.9) 7.9 (5.5, 11.3) 8.8 (6.3, 12.1)

28.6 (18.7, 41.2) 45.3 (31.9, 59.4) 2.4 (0.6, 9.4) 5.6 (2.6, 11.7)

11.2 (9.8, 12.8) 22.5 (20.4, 24.8) 6.9 (5.7, 8.4) 7.2 (5.9, 8.8)

4.9 (2.9, 8.2) 25.9 (18.9, 34.6) 8.1 (4.6, 13.9) 10.6 (6.9, 15.9)

16.5 (11.8, 22.5) 31.8 (21.7, 44.0) 6.1 (3.5, 10.6) 7.3 (3.2, 15.8)

7.4 (3.6, 14.4) 21.4 (14.3, 30.7) 7.4 (3.3, 15.6) 6.5 (2.9, 13.7)

12.8 (9.3, 17.4) 26.9 (21.7, 33.0) 10.1 (7.2, 14.0) 11.5 (8.4, 15.5)

11.7 (9.4, 14.6) 27.1 (22.8, 31.8) 7.1 (5.4, 9.3) 7.6 (5.2, 10.8)

9.4 (6.6, 13.3) 22.6 (19.2, 26.5) 7.7 (5.4, 10.8) 5.8 (3.9, 8.7)

7.0 (5.4, 9.1) 19.0 (15.5, 23.2) 4.5 (3.0, 6.6) 6.4 (4.5, 8.8)

17.9 (12.2, 25.6) 40.0 (31.0, 49.7) 6.6 (3.0, 14.0) 11.8 (6.7, 20.1)

14.2 (11.2, 17.7) 31.5 (27.0, 36.4) 8.4 (6.3, 10.9) 8.7 (5.8, 12.7)

9.5 (7.8, 11.5) 21.1 (17.9, 24.8) 6.6 (4.5, 9.6) 6.0 (4.4, 8.0)

6.7 (5.4, 8.3) 15.4 (12.8, 18.4) 6.3 (4.8, 8.3) 7.2 (5.5, 9.4)

(continued on next page)
30

Table 6 Sources of Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics (continued)

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals 

Source for Most Recent Search for Cancer Information

Respondents who reported ever seeking cancer information

Internet Other[4]

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total 48.6 (46.1, 51.0) 47.6 (45.3, 50.0) 2.4 (1.8, 3.3) 1.0 (0.5, 1.7)

 Gender 

Male 53.1 (48.9, 57.3) 51.7 (46.8, 56.5) 3.1 (2.0, 4.6) 1.2 (0.5, 2.7)

Female 45.7 (42.8, 48.6) 44.8 (42.3, 47.4) 2.0 (1.5, 2.9) 0.8 (0.3, 1.9)

 Age Group 

18-34 63.7 (59.7, 67.5) 66.2 (61.8, 70.4) 1.5 (0.8, 2.7) 0.4 (0.1, 1.8)

35-49 50.7 (46.5, 54.9) 48.6 (43.9, 53.3) 2.5 (1.4, 4.5) 1.6 (0.7, 4.1)

50-64 42.3 (37.7, 47.0) 40.8 (36.4, 45.5) 2.8 (1.7, 4.6) 1.0 (0.4, 2.2)

65-79 17.7 (13.8, 22.6) 20.8 (17.1, 25.0) 4.3 (2.6, 7.1) 0.4 (0.1, 1.6)

80+ 8.3 (2.9, 21.4) 3.6 (1.2, 10.3) 3.0 (1.0, 8.3) 0.0 (0.0, 0.0)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 50.5 (47.5, 53.6) 49.6 (46.6, 52.7) 2.1 (1.4, 3.0) 0.9 (0.5, 1.7)

Black, non-Hispanic 44.7 (37.8, 51.7) 43.2 (33.1, 53.9) 2.3 (1.0, 5.6) 0.0 (0.0, 0.0)

Hispanic 36.0 (28.0, 44.8) 36.3 (25.2, 49.0) 2.1 (0.7, 5.7) 1.3 (0.2, 9.1)

Non-Hispanic Other 52.2 (43.1, 61.1) 48.2 (37.0, 59.5) 5.8 (2.5, 12.7) 3.2 (0.7, 13.5)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 33.3 (28.1, 39.0) 38.0 (31.8, 44.6) 3.4 (2.1, 5.2) 1.5 (0.5, 4.4)

$25,000 to < $50,000 44.6 (40.3, 49.0) 43.3 (37.6, 49.2) 2.1 (1.2, 3.9) 0.3 (0.1, 1.3)

$50,000 to < $75,000 55.2 (50.9, 59.4) 45.6 (39.7, 51.6) 2.3 (1.3, 4.2) 2.4 (0.9, 6.2)

$75,000 or more 63.0 (58.8, 67.0) 60.4 (55.7, 64.8) 1.7 (0.9, 3.4) 0.4 (0.1, 1.2)

 Education 

Less than High School 30.1 (21.5, 40.4) 17.2 (11.2, 25.5) 1.5 (0.7, 3.3) 0.8 (0.1, 5.8)

High School Graduate 42.0 (37.6, 46.5) 37.7 (31.9, 43.8) 2.8 (1.5, 5.1) 1.6 (0.6, 3.9)

Some College 52.8 (47.9, 57.5) 52.8 (48.1, 57.5) 2.3 (1.4, 3.8) 1.0 (0.3, 3.1)

College Graduate or Beyond 56.6 (52.7, 60.5) 58.5 (54.5, 62.4) 2.4 (1.5, 3.8) 0.6 (0.2, 1.3)

[4] For HINTS 2003 includes radio, television, and other; for HINTS 2005 includes other.
31

Estimates measuring respondents’ most recent source 

of cancer information suggest that the Internet is the 

predominant source.
32

Table 7 Preferred Source for Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals 

Preferred Source for Cancer Information

All Respondents

Printed Material[1] Interpersonal Source[2] 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 2.9 (2.5, 3.4) 2.8 (2.3, 3.5) 4.6 (4.0, 5.3) 5.6 (4.7, 6.6) 

 Gender 

Male 2.6 (2.0, 3.4) 2.7 (1.9, 3.8) 5.1 (4.1, 6.2) 7.0 (5.2, 9.3) 

Female 3.3 (2.6, 4.0) 2.9 (2.3, 3.7) 4.2 (3.4, 5.0) 4.3 (3.7, 5.0) 

 Age Group 

18-34 2.8 (2.0, 3.9) 2.0 (1.2, 3.3) 4.3 (3.2, 5.8) 8.2 (5.9, 11.4) 

35-49 2.4 (1.9, 3.1) 3.3 (2.2, 5.0) 5.8 (4.8, 7.1) 4.2 (3.0, 5.8) 

50-64 4.5 (3.4, 5.9) 3.1 (2.2, 4.2) 4.2 (3.2, 5.4) 5.1 (3.7, 6.9) 

65-79 2.3 (1.4, 3.8) 3.1 (2.2, 4.3) 2.9 (1.9, 4.4) 4.1 (3.0, 5.5) 

80+ 0.7 (0.2, 2.9) 3.5 (1.2, 9.4) 4.8 (2.6, 8.4) 2.6 (1.3, 4.9) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 2.8 (2.4, 3.2) 2.6 (2.0, 3.4) 4.9 (4.2, 5.8) 5.7 (4.7, 6.8) 

Black, non-Hispanic 5.0 (3.3, 7.3) 2.8 (1.3, 6.1) 3.6 (1.9, 6.7) 6.0 (2.8, 12.3) 

Hispanic 3.0 (2.0, 4.7) 4.3 (2.7, 6.8) 3.9 (2.7, 5.5) 3.5 (1.4, 8.6) 

Non-Hispanic Other 2.9 (1.3, 6.4) 2.9 (1.2, 6.8) 4.4 (2.3, 8.1) 5.5 (1.8, 15.9) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 3.1 (2.2, 4.3) 3.6 (2.5, 5.0) 4.2 (3.3, 5.5) 4.3 (3.0, 6.1) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 3.1 (2.2, 4.3) 3.4 (2.0, 5.9) 4.2 (3.3, 5.4) 4.5 (2.6, 7.5) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 3.1 (2.0, 4.7) 3.4 (2.2, 5.0) 3.9 (2.6, 5.9) 7.0 (5.0, 9.8) 

$75,000 or more 3.1 (2.3, 4.2) 1.6 (1.0, 2.6) 5.7 (4.2, 7.6) 6.1 (4.0, 9.3) 

 Education 

Less than High School 2.8 (1.5, 5.1) 3.0 (1.8, 5.1) 3.6 (2.1, 6.0) 3.5 (2.1, 5.9) 

High School Graduate 2.7 (2.0, 3.7) 3.4 (2.2, 5.0) 4.7 (3.6, 6.2) 5.9 (4.4, 8.0) 

Some College 2.6 (1.8, 3.7) 2.6 (1.8, 3.6) 5.4 (4.3, 6.8) 6.0 (4.3, 8.3) 

College Graduate or Beyond 4.0 (3.0, 5.4) 2.5 (1.7, 3.7) 4.3 (3.3, 5.5) 5.5 (4.1, 7.3) 

[1] For HINTS 2003 and HINTS 2005 this category includes books, brochures, pamphlets, magazines, and newspaper.

[2] For HINTS 2003 includes family, friend/co-worker; for HINTS 2005 includes family, friend/co-worker, and someone with cancer.

[3] For HINTS 2003 includes library, info. phone number, and cancer organizations; for HINTS 2005 includes library 

and info. phone number.
33

Health Care Provider Information Specialist[3]

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

49.5 (48.1, 50.8) 55.0 (53.5, 56.5) 8.1 (7.2, 9.1) 5.6 (4.8, 6.6)

48.6 (46.3, 50.9) 55.2 (52.4, 58.0) 7.1 (5.7, 8.8) 4.8 (3.7, 6.1)

50.2 (48.4, 52.1) 54.9 (52.8, 56.9) 9.0 (7.8, 10.4) 6.3 (5.2, 7.6)

39.4 (36.9, 42.0) 46.7 (43.1, 50.4) 7.6 (6.0, 9.6) 3.4 (2.2, 5.4)

42.4 (40.0, 45.0) 49.9 (46.4, 53.3) 8.1 (6.1, 10.6) 5.9 (4.6, 7.7)

53.5 (49.9, 57.0) 56.3 (53.4, 59.3) 8.7 (7.5, 10.2) 7.7 (6.1, 9.6)

76.2 (72.8, 79.3) 76.7 (73.5, 79.7) 8.7 (6.9, 11.0) 6.5 (4.9, 8.7)

84.4 (78.8, 88.7) 85.9 (80.7, 89.9) 5.9 (3.0, 11.3) 5.5 (3.2, 9.4)

47.0 (45.1, 48.9) 52.9 (51.1, 54.6) 7.6 (6.5, 8.8) 5.2 (4.1, 6.4)

52.0 (47.1, 56.8) 55.9 (49.3, 62.4) 14.1 (10.7, 18.4) 6.0 (4.3, 8.5)

62.7 (58.1, 67.1) 65.7 (59.4, 71.5) 5.5 (3.8, 8.0) 5.0 (3.2, 7.6)

43.2 (36.2, 50.5) 53.7 (45.4, 61.7) 8.8 (5.0, 15.0) 8.8 (5.5, 13.7)

61.8 (58.4, 65.1) 64.9 (60.9, 68.7) 12.0 (9.6, 14.9) 8.6 (6.5, 11.3)

49.3 (46.4, 52.2) 58.2 (54.2, 62.2) 8.1 (6.3, 10.4) 5.6 (4.2, 7.6)

42.8 (39.0, 46.7) 50.1 (45.8, 54.5) 6.5 (4.7, 9.0) 3.8 (2.6, 5.5)

35.5 (32.9, 38.1) 44.9 (40.4, 49.4) 4.0 (3.0, 5.4) 3.8 (2.4, 6.0)

69.7 (66.1, 73.0) 73.6 (68.8, 77.9) 8.3 (6.0, 11.6) 6.5 (4.6, 9.2)

57.5 (54.9, 60.0) 60.8 (57.9, 63.7) 8.1 (6.7, 9.6) 6.1 (4.6, 8.1)

39.9 (37.0, 42.8) 50.4 (46.5, 54.3) 10.1 (7.9, 13.0) 5.0 (3.5, 6.9)

35.2 (32.7, 37.8) 42.3 (39.4, 45.3) 5.8 (4.6, 7.2) 4.6 (3.7, 5.8)

(continued on next page)
34

Table 7 Preferred Source for Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics (continued)

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals 

Preferred Source for Cancer Information

All Respondents

Internet Other[4]

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total 33.9 (32.6, 35.3) 30.4 (29.0, 31.8) 1.0 (0.7, 1.4) 0.6 (0.2, 1.5)

 Gender 

Male 35.6 (33.2, 38.0) 29.8 (27.1, 32.6) 1.1 (0.6, 1.8) 0.5 (0.1, 1.7)

Female 32.4 (30.6, 34.3) 30.9 (28.6, 33.3) 0.9 (0.6, 1.3) 0.7 (0.2, 2.6)

 Age Group 

18-34 45.5 (42.6, 48.5) 38.9 (35.0, 42.9) 0.4 (0.2, 1.0) 0.7 (0.1, 5.3)

35-49 40.2 (37.4, 43.1) 36.0 (33.3, 38.8) 1.0 (0.5, 2.2) 0.7 (0.2, 2.0)

50-64 27.9 (24.8, 31.2) 27.5 (24.9, 30.2) 1.2 (0.8, 1.8) 0.4 (0.1, 1.3)

65-79 8.2 (6.5, 10.4) 9.2 (7.4, 11.3) 1.7 (0.8, 3.5) 0.4 (0.2, 1.1)

80+ 2.2 (0.9, 5.1) 2.5 (0.8, 7.7) 2.1 (0.9, 5.1) 0.0 (0.0, 0.0)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 36.7 (34.8, 38.6) 33.4 (31.4, 35.4) 1.1 (0.7, 1.5) 0.3 (0.1, 0.6)

Black, non-Hispanic 24.3 (20.4, 28.6) 29.1 (23.2, 35.9) 1.0 (0.5, 2.1) 0.1 (0.0, 1.0)

Hispanic 24.5 (20.7, 28.6) 20.5 (16.5, 25.3) 0.4 (0.1, 1.1) 0.9 (0.2, 5.2)

Non-Hispanic Other 39.5 (33.3, 46.2) 28.8 (22.4, 36.2) 1.2 (0.3, 4.9) 0.3 (0.0, 2.2)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 18.0 (15.6, 20.6) 18.2 (14.4, 22.9) 0.9 (0.5, 1.8) 0.4 (0.1, 1.4)

$25,000 to < $50,000 34.0 (31.3, 36.8) 27.9 (24.9, 31.2) 1.3 (0.8, 2.0) 0.3 (0.1, 0.7)

$50,000 to < $75,000 43.1 (39.4, 46.9) 35.0 (31.2, 38.9) 0.5 (0.2, 1.2) 0.7 (0.2, 3.4)

$75,000 or more 51.1 (47.9, 54.2) 43.5 (39.6, 47.5) 0.6 (0.3, 1.4) 0.1 (0.0, 0.4)

 Education 

Less than High School 14.1 (11.5, 17.3) 13.0 (9.5, 17.5) 1.5 (0.6, 3.4) 0.4 (0.1, 1.2)

High School Graduate 26.1 (24.1, 28.3) 23.6 (21.4, 25.9) 0.9 (0.5, 1.4) 0.2 (0.1, 0.5)

Some College 41.0 (37.9, 44.0) 35.7 (32.1, 39.6) 1.1 (0.7, 2.0) 0.4 (0.1, 1.1)

College Graduate or Beyond 50.1 (47.0, 53.2) 44.5 (41.3, 47.8) 0.6 (0.3, 1.3) 0.6 (0.1, 2.6)

[4] For HINTS 2003 includes radio, television, and other; for HINTS 2005 includes other.
35

The percentage of respondents who reported health care professionals as 

their preferred source of cancer information increased from 2003 to 2005, 

while the percentage of respondents who reported the Internet as their 

preferred source decreased.
36

Table 8 Surrogate Sources of Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Who looked for cancer information for you?

Respondents who reported that another person looked for information for them

Spouse or Other Family Friend or Co-worker 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

 % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 72.5 (68.9, 75.9) 82.2 (79.3, 84.8) 21.5 (18.5, 24.8) 15.9 (13.3, 18.9) 

 Gender 

Male 78.0 (70.0, 84.4) 88.5 (83.3, 92.2) 17.4 (12.2, 24.1) 9.5 (6.0, 14.7) 

Female 68.6 (64.2, 72.7) 77.8 (73.2, 81.8) 24.4 (20.9, 28.2) 20.4 (16.5, 24.9) 

 Age Group 

18-34 67.4 (57.9, 75.7) 84.7 (75.4, 90.9) 25.7 (18.7, 34.2) 14.4 (8.4, 23.6) 

35-49 74.4 (69.6, 78.7) 81.1 (76.1, 85.2) 18.5 (14.7, 23.0) 16.8 (12.7, 21.9) 

50-64 69.7 (62.6, 76.0) 77.1 (72.6, 81.1) 25.5 (19.6, 32.5) 21.4 (17.2, 26.4) 

65-79 81.7 (73.6, 87.8) 89.8 (84.0, 93.7) 14.0 (8.6, 22.0) 6.3 (3.6, 10.9) 

80+ 95.4 (78.6, 99.1) 94.2 (84.3, 98.0) 4.6 (0.9, 21.4) 4.4 (1.4, 13.1) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 75.7 (72.0, 79.0) 82.3 (79.4, 84.9) 19.1 (15.9, 22.7) 15.6 (13.0, 18.5) 

Black, non-Hispanic 57.1 (42.5, 70.5) 81.8 (69.2, 90.0) 35.3 (22.1, 51.2) 16.7 (8.6, 30.0) 

Hispanic 68.8 (54.2, 80.4) 79.6 (65.3, 89.0) 26.5 (16.3, 40.0) 16.9 (8.9, 29.7) 

Non-Hispanic Other 71.0 (53.8, 83.7) 80.4 (63.9, 90.5) 21.3 (11.2, 36.6) 19.6 (9.5, 36.1) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 73.6 (65.6, 80.2) 88.7 (80.9, 93.6) 19.8 (14.1, 27.2) 10.3 (5.7, 17.8) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 65.6 (57.3, 73.0) 82.4 (74.5, 88.3) 28.9 (21.5, 37.6) 16.4 (10.7, 24.3) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 73.6 (65.7, 80.2) 83.3 (75.8, 88.9) 18.9 (13.5, 25.7) 15.0 (9.9, 22.0) 

$75,000 or more 78.3 (73.1, 82.8) 75.1 (68.3, 80.9) 17.0 (12.7, 22.5) 21.6 (15.6, 29.2) 

 Education 

Less than High School 71.2 (51.6, 85.1) 87.5 (74.2, 94.4) 22.8 (12.2, 38.5) 12.5 (5.6, 25.8) 

High School Graduate 72.9 (66.9, 78.1) 84.5 (78.4, 89.2) 21.8 (16.5, 28.2) 14.6 (10.2, 20.5) 

Some College 73.3 (66.0, 79.5) 82.2 (76.3, 86.8) 20.2 (14.8, 26.9) 15.9 (11.3, 21.8) 

College Graduate or Beyond 71.8 (67.5, 75.7) 77.9 (71.8, 83.0) 23.5 (19.5, 28.0) 18.4 (13.7, 24.4) 

Estimates in 2003 and 2005 may not be comparable. In 2003 respondents were allowed only one response. In 2005 multiple responses 

were allowed; however, estimates given in this table for 2005 are based only on respondents first response.
37

Information Specialist or Other

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI)

6.0 (4.5, 7.9) 1.9 (1.1, 3.2)

4.6 (2.6, 8.0) 2.0 (1.1, 3.9) 

7.0 (4.9, 9.8) 1.8 (0.9, 3.6)

6.9 (3.7, 12.5) 0.9 (0.1, 6.7) 

7.1 (4.5, 11.0) 2.1 (1.0, 4.5) 

4.8 (2.2, 9.8) 1.5 (0.6, 3.5) 

4.2 (2.0, 8.8) 3.8 (1.4, 9.7) 

0.0 (0.0, 0.0) 1.4 (0.2, 10.3)

5.3 (3.8, 7.3) 2.1 (1.2, 3.5)

7.6 (3.5, 15.8) 1.5 (0.5, 4.3)

4.7 (1.0, 19.4) 3.4 (0.4, 23.0)

7.8 (1.9, 26.6) 0.0 (0.0, 0.0)

6.6 (3.6, 11.9) 1.0 (0.3, 3.3)

5.5 (3.0, 9.7) 1.2 (0.4, 3.7)

7.5 (4.2, 13.1) 1.7 (0.5, 5.9)

4.6 (2.0, 10.4) 3.3 (1.5, 6.8)

6.0 (1.7, 19.2) 0.0 (0.0, 0.0)

5.3 (3.0, 9.1) 0.9 (0.3, 2.6)

6.6 (3.7, 11.3) 2.0 (0.8, 4.6)

4.7 (2.8, 7.8) 3.7 (2.0, 6.7)
38

Table 9 Cancer Information Seeking and Usefulness of Information on the Internet, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Percent of information Seeking and ratings of Information usefulness

Rating Scale of Usefulness: 1=Very useful, 2=Somewhat useful, 3=A little useful, 4=Not at all useful

Looked for Cancer Information on the Internet Rating of Information Usefulness 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

 % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total 20.5 (19.3, 21.8) 28.2 (26.9, 29.7) 1.66 (1.61, 1.70) 1.66 (1.60, 1.72)

 Gender 

Male 17.8 (16.1, 19.6) 25.3 (22.5, 28.2) 1.62 (1.56, 1.69) 1.69 (1.57, 1.80)

Female 23.1 (21.3, 24.9) 31.0 (29.3, 32.8) 1.68 (1.62, 1.74) 1.65 (1.59, 1.70)

 Age Group 

18-34 24.4 (21.9, 27.1) 32.6 (29.6, 35.7) 1.69 (1.60, 1.77) 1.69 (1.56, 1.81)

35-49 24.4 (22.1, 27.0) 32.5 (29.4, 35.8) 1.62 (1.57, 1.67) 1.65 (1.58, 1.73)

50-64 21.1 (18.7, 23.7) 30.0 (27.4, 32.7) 1.65 (1.57, 1.73) 1.63 (1.55, 1.70)

65-79 5.7 (4.4, 7.3) 12.0 (10.2, 14.0) 1.77 (1.64, 1.91) 1.74 (1.61, 1.86)

80+ 0.6 (0.1, 3.1) 1.1 (0.4, 3.0) 1.22 (-0.36, 2.81) 2.00 (2.00, 2.00)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 24.0 (22.5, 25.5) 33.3 (31.2, 35.4) 1.68 (1.63, 1.73) 1.69 (1.62, 1.76)

Black, non-Hispanic 14.5 (11.5, 18.2) 23.3 (17.2, 30.6) 1.50 (1.33, 1.66) 1.28 (1.16, 1.41)

Hispanic 7.6 (5.8, 9.8) 11.2 (7.8, 15.9) 1.57 (1.34, 1.80) 1.62 (1.34, 1.91)

Non-Hispanic Other 24.2 (19.4, 29.6) 28.2 (21.5, 36.0) 1.65 (1.49, 1.81) 1.79 (1.60, 1.97)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 10.5 (8.8, 12.5) 18.0 (15.2, 21.2) 1.69 (1.58, 1.80) 1.71 (1.54, 1.87)

$25,000 to < $50,000 17.3 (15.0, 19.9) 25.6 (22.1, 29.4) 1.65 (1.54, 1.76) 1.66 (1.56, 1.77)

$50,000 to < $75,000 28.1 (25.0, 31.4) 30.4 (26.7, 34.4) 1.76 (1.67, 1.86) 1.62 (1.52, 1.73)

$75,000 or more 38.0 (34.5, 41.7) 44.6 (40.4, 48.8) 1.58 (1.53, 1.63) 1.68 (1.57, 1.79)

 Education 

Less than High School 6.7 (4.5, 10.0) 6.4 (4.6, 8.9) 1.51 (1.19, 1.84) 1.59 (1.30, 1.88)

High School Graduate 12.9 (11.1, 15.0) 19.9 (17.0, 23.2) 1.70 (1.59, 1.81) 1.64 (1.54, 1.74)

Some College 25.0 (22.5, 27.6) 34.7 (30.9, 38.6) 1.68 (1.59, 1.77) 1.70 (1.59, 1.81)

College Graduate or Beyond 37.0 (34.5, 39.6) 46.5 (43.3, 49.7) 1.64 (1.59, 1.68) 1.65 (1.58, 1.72)
39

Respondents who reported using the Internet as a source for cancer

information rated the information, on average, as useful.
40

Table 10 Awareness of National Cancer Organizations, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Awareness of National Cancer Organizations 

 

NCI NCI’s Cancer Information Service 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 76.7 (75.4, 77.8) 76.9 (75.2, 78.5) 25.8 (24.2, 27.5) 29.3 (27.6, 31.0) 

 Gender 

Male 76.4 (74.5, 78.2) 77.0 (74.3, 79.5) 24.6 (22.5, 26.7) 26.7 (23.5, 30.2) 

Female 76.9 (75.3, 78.4) 76.8 (74.8, 78.6) 27.0 (24.9, 29.2) 31.6 (29.7, 33.6) 

 Age Group 

18-34 73.2 (70.8, 75.5) 70.9 (67.0, 74.6) 20.4 (18.1, 23.0) 21.2 (18.0, 24.8) 

35-49 79.5 (77.1, 81.6) 79.8 (76.8, 82.5) 24.5 (22.2, 26.9) 29.5 (25.6, 33.7) 

50-64 79.8 (77.4, 82.1) 81.0 (78.7, 83.1) 30.7 (27.4, 34.3) 33.4 (30.6, 36.2) 

65-79 75.6 (72.3, 78.7) 76.9 (73.0, 80.3) 33.5 (29.1, 38.1) 39.9 (35.2, 44.7) 

80+ 66.7 (58.9, 73.7) 80.6 (74.7, 85.5) 29.1 (21.4, 38.1) 31.6 (25.1, 39.0) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 78.2 (76.8, 79.5) 80.3 (78.5, 81.9) 20.3 (18.6, 22.1) 25.9 (24.0, 27.8) 

Black, non-Hispanic 77.8 (73.4, 81.6) 71.8 (63.8, 78.6) 33.6 (28.0, 39.8) 34.6 (26.5, 43.8) 

Hispanic 69.6 (65.0, 73.9) 66.8 (61.1, 72.0) 52.3 (47.2, 57.4) 43.0 (35.6, 50.8) 

Non-Hispanic Other 70.7 (62.7, 77.7) 75.3 (67.5, 81.8) 25.2 (18.5, 33.4) 35.3 (26.6, 45.2) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 74.6 (72.1, 77.0) 70.7 (67.0, 74.2) 40.1 (36.3, 44.0) 39.7 (34.4, 45.2) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 77.3 (74.5, 79.8) 79.7 (75.3, 83.4) 24.4 (22.1, 26.9) 29.7 (25.5, 34.3) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 78.6 (75.0, 81.8) 80.3 (76.9, 83.3) 20.7 (17.9, 23.7) 30.1 (25.5, 35.0) 

$75,000 or more 80.4 (77.7, 82.8) 82.0 (78.7, 85.0) 13.3 (10.8, 16.2) 21.1 (18.3, 24.2) 

 Education 

Less than High School 70.8 (66.1, 75.1) 66.6 (62.4, 70.6) 45.2 (39.2, 51.3) 44.7 (38.3, 51.2) 

High School Graduate 76.6 (74.6, 78.5) 78.1 (75.1, 80.8) 29.0 (26.3, 31.9) 28.4 (24.8, 32.4) 

Some College 78.3 (76.1, 80.3) 80.0 (76.7, 82.9) 19.7 (17.0, 22.6) 30.1 (27.1, 33.2) 

College Graduate or Beyond 78.9 (76.7, 81.0) 78.9 (76.2, 81.3) 15.5 (13.4, 17.8) 21.0 (18.4, 24.0) 

*The name of bogus organizations differ by survey year and therefore are not necessarily comparable.

2003: “United States Center for Cancer Prevention Research” 2005: “Cancer Control of America”
41

1-800-4-Cancer Information Number Bogus Organizations *

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

19.5 (18.4, 20.8) 19.1 (17.4, 20.9) 32.6 (31.0, 34.3) 10.5 (9.1, 12.0)

17.3 (15.6, 19.2) 16.6 (14.1, 19.4) 32.1 (29.7, 34.6) 10.2 (8.2, 12.6)

21.6 (19.9, 23.5) 21.5 (19.8, 23.2) 33.1 (31.2, 35.1) 10.7 (9.4, 12.1)

17.9 (15.3, 20.7) 18.3 (15.2, 21.8) 39.9 (36.8, 43.0) 14.9 (11.9, 18.6)

18.3 (16.4, 20.3) 18.9 (15.9, 22.2) 32.3 (29.5, 35.2) 8.5 (6.3, 11.2)

24.1 (21.6, 26.7) 21.8 (18.8, 25.1) 25.8 (23.4, 28.4) 7.4 (5.7, 9.5)

20.9 (18.1, 23.9) 17.9 (15.1, 21.1) 28.8 (25.4, 32.4) 8.9 (6.7, 11.8)

12.8 (8.8, 18.4) 16.1 (11.4, 22.3) 26.1 (20.8, 32.2) 13.4 (8.6, 20.3)

16.7 (15.2, 18.3) 16.7 (15.1, 18.4) 30.7 (28.8, 32.6) 5.6 (4.4, 7.0)

29.3 (24.6, 34.5) 26.3 (20.6, 32.9) 41.8 (36.9, 46.9) 16.7 (12.8, 21.4)

30.0 (26.5, 33.7) 28.0 (23.1, 33.6) 34.2 (30.4, 38.3) 26.7 (20.8, 33.5)

17.1 (12.0, 23.8) 20.1 (12.8, 30.1) 33.8 (27.8, 40.4) 15.7 (10.2, 23.3)

28.2 (25.3, 31.3) 24.6 (21.3, 28.1) 37.5 (34.2, 40.8) 19.1 (15.1, 23.7)

18.6 (16.2, 21.2) 19.8 (16.8, 23.3) 32.2 (29.3, 35.2) 10.2 (8.0, 12.8)

17.9 (15.0, 21.1) 17.8 (14.8, 21.3) 33.0 (29.2, 37.1) 5.7 (3.9, 8.2)

11.1 (9.3, 13.2) 14.5 (11.8, 17.8) 26.2 (22.7, 30.1) 4.3 (2.7, 6.6)

29.4 (26.1, 33.0) 27.4 (23.0, 32.3) 37.9 (33.8, 42.2) 25.6 (20.9, 30.9)

21.5 (19.2, 23.9) 19.8 (16.8, 23.1) 32.9 (30.2, 35.7) 10.1 (7.7, 13.0)

18.6 (16.2, 21.1) 19.3 (15.8, 23.5) 34.3 (31.3, 37.4) 7.8 (5.9, 10.3)

11.9 (10.4, 13.6) 14.0 (11.3, 17.1) 26.2 (24.0, 28.5) 3.9 (2.8, 5.3)
42

Table 11 Trust in Sources of Information, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

How much would you trust information about health or medical topics from...

 Doctor Family

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total A lot 62.4 (60.8, 64.0) 67.2 (65.1, 69.2) 18.9 (18.0, 20.0) 22.8 (21.0, 24.7)

Some 30.7 (29.2, 32.2) 24.8 (23.3, 26.3) 48.9 (47.4, 50.3) 45.0 (43.0, 47.0)

A little/not at all 6.9 (6.0, 7.9) 8.0 (6.9, 9.3) 32.2 (30.8, 33.6) 32.2 (30.7, 33.6)

 Gender 

 Male A lot 61.5 (58.9, 64.0) 67.1 (63.7, 70.3) 17.8 (16.1, 19.6) 22.9 (20.2, 25.8)

Some 29.8 (27.4, 32.3) 24.4 (21.7, 27.3) 46.5 (44.1, 48.9) 42.5 (39.0, 45.9)

A little/not at all 8.7 (7.2, 10.6) 8.6 (7.0, 10.4) 35.7 (33.8, 37.7) 34.6 (32.0, 37.4)

 Female A lot 63.2 (61.3, 65.1) 67.3 (65.5, 69.1) 20.0 (18.8, 21.3) 22.7 (20.4, 25.2)

Some 31.5 (29.9, 33.2) 25.2 (23.6, 26.8) 51.1 (49.3, 52.9) 47.4 (45.1, 49.7)

A little/not at all 5.2 (4.4, 6.2) 7.5 (5.9, 9.4) 28.9 (27.0, 30.8) 29.9 (28.4, 31.4)

 Age Group 

 18-34 A lot 66.2 (63.2, 69.1) 68.4 (63.7, 72.8) 18.6 (16.4, 21.1) 25.3 (21.6, 29.3)

Some 29.2 (26.6, 32.0) 23.8 (20.0, 28.0) 50.3 (47.0, 53.6) 42.2 (38.1, 46.3)

A little/not at all 4.5 (3.5, 5.9) 7.8 (5.7, 10.6) 31.1 (28.1, 34.2) 32.6 (29.1, 36.2)

 35-49 A lot 60.1 (57.4, 62.8) 66.8 (63.6, 69.9) 18.8 (16.6, 21.3) 23.0 (20.6, 25.7)

Some 32.6 (30.2, 35.1) 26.2 (23.5, 29.1) 51.0 (48.4, 53.5) 46.4 (43.5, 49.5)

A little/not at all 7.3 (5.3, 9.9) 7.0 (5.2, 9.4) 30.2 (28.1, 32.5) 30.5 (27.7, 33.5)

 50-64 A lot 60.4 (57.1, 63.7) 68.9 (65.7, 71.9) 19.0 (16.9, 21.3) 21.4 (18.7, 24.3)

Some 32.1 (29.2, 35.2) 24.0 (21.5, 26.6) 47.9 (45.5, 50.4) 48.2 (45.2, 51.3)

A little/not at all 7.5 (5.7, 9.8) 7.2 (5.7, 9.0) 33.0 (30.5, 35.6) 30.4 (27.1, 33.9)

 65-79 A lot 63.8 (60.7, 66.8) 65.3 (61.2, 69.2) 18.9 (15.9, 22.3) 20.5 (16.5, 25.2)

Some 27.6 (24.4, 31.1) 24.3 (21.4, 27.3) 45.8 (41.9, 49.7) 44.0 (40.4, 47.7)

A little/not at all 8.6 (6.3, 11.6) 10.5 (7.6, 14.3) 35.4 (31.8, 39.1) 35.5 (31.7, 39.4)

 80+ A lot 54.1 (46.8, 61.2) 56.0 (49.7, 62.2) 24.0 (18.4, 30.6) 17.1 (11.9, 24.0)

Some 29.6 (22.9, 37.4) 28.8 (23.5, 34.8) 32.1 (25.8, 39.2) 38.7 (32.2, 45.5)

A little/not at all 16.3 (11.9, 22.0) 15.1 (10.6, 21.1) 43.8 (37.5, 50.4) 44.3 (37.2, 51.6)

 Race/Ethnicity 

 White, non-Hispanic A lot 63.4 (61.6, 65.1) 71.3 (69.0, 73.4) 17.8 (16.5, 19.1) 20.9 (19.1, 22.8)

Some 30.9 (29.3, 32.6) 23.1 (21.4, 24.9) 51.7 (50.1, 53.4) 48.3 (45.9, 50.7)

A little/not at all 5.7 (4.7, 7.0) 5.7 (4.6, 7.1) 30.5 (29.0, 32.0) 30.8 (28.8, 32.8)

 Black, non-Hispanic A lot 59.0 (54.1, 63.8) 58.9 (52.3, 65.1) 23.8 (20.7, 27.3) 25.1 (19.8, 31.3)

Some 34.8 (30.0, 39.9) 31.2 (25.1, 38.1) 44.6 (40.4, 49.0) 39.3 (33.0, 46.0)

A little/not at all 6.2 (3.9, 9.8) 9.9 (7.0, 13.8) 31.5 (27.9, 35.4) 35.6 (30.0, 41.6)

 Hispanic A lot 60.7 (56.0, 65.2) 58.4 (53.1, 63.4) 21.6 (18.0, 25.7) 29.6 (24.0, 36.0)

Some 26.0 (22.1, 30.2) 26.9 (22.0, 32.4) 37.8 (33.7, 42.2) 35.3 (30.3, 40.6)

A little/not at all 13.3 (10.2, 17.2) 14.7 (11.0, 19.4) 40.6 (36.1, 45.2) 35.1 (30.0, 40.6)

 Non-Hispanic Other A lot 59.8 (53.5, 65.9) 66.0 (57.6, 73.5) 18.1 (12.2, 25.8) 25.9 (18.8, 34.5)

Some 32.2 (26.5, 38.4) 26.0 (19.1, 34.2) 47.3 (40.7, 54.0) 47.1 (38.2, 56.1)

A little/not at all 8.0 (4.4, 14.0) 8.0 (4.8, 13.2) 34.6 (29.3, 40.4) 27.1 (19.3, 36.5)
43

How much would you trust information about health or medical topics from...

 Doctor Family

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Household Income 

 Less than $25,000 A lot 59.9 (57.2, 62.5) 60.5 (56.3, 64.7) 24.3 (21.9, 27.0) 27.5 (23.7, 31.7)

Some 28.4 (26.0, 31.0) 26.6 (23.1, 30.6) 41.3 (38.4, 44.3) 39.3 (35.5, 43.2)

A little/not at all 11.7 (9.3, 14.6) 12.8 (10.5, 15.6) 34.4 (31.7, 37.1) 33.2 (29.7, 36.8)

 $25,000 to < $50,000 A lot 59.5 (56.5, 62.5) 63.9 (59.8, 67.8) 18.8 (16.8, 20.9) 22.1 (18.7, 26.0)

Some 34.5 (31.4, 37.8) 27.8 (24.3, 31.5) 51.3 (48.7, 54.0) 44.7 (40.8, 48.7)

A little/not at all 5.9 (4.5, 7.7) 8.3 (6.4, 10.7) 29.9 (27.7, 32.1) 33.1 (30.2, 36.2)

 $50,000 to < $75,000 A lot 63.3 (59.7, 66.7) 73.0 (68.6, 77.0) 14.4 (12.2, 16.9) 23.1 (19.6, 26.9)

Some 31.9 (28.4, 35.5) 21.7 (18.5, 25.2) 55.7 (51.7, 59.6) 49.0 (43.9, 54.1)

A little/not at all 4.8 (3.1, 7.6) 5.3 (3.6, 7.9) 29.9 (26.2, 33.9) 28.0 (24.4, 31.8)

 $75,000 or more A lot 67.4 (64.3, 70.3) 75.6 (71.1, 79.7) 13.5 (11.5, 15.8) 18.9 (16.1, 22.2)

Some 29.2 (26.3, 32.4) 21.9 (18.1, 26.3) 51.3 (48.5, 54.2) 49.3 (44.5, 54.1)

A little/not at all 3.4 (2.4, 4.7) 2.4 (1.5, 3.9) 35.2 (32.3, 38.2) 31.8 (28.4, 35.4)

 Education 

 Less than High School A lot 57.6 (53.8, 61.3) 59.8 (54.8, 64.7) 23.8 (20.3, 27.7) 30.2 (25.8, 35.0)

Some 28.2 (24.5, 32.1) 24.2 (20.2, 28.7) 37.0 (33.4, 40.8) 32.1 (27.5, 37.0)

A little/not at all 14.3 (11.6, 17.4) 16.0 (12.8, 19.9) 39.2 (34.6, 43.9) 37.7 (32.3, 43.6)

 High School Graduate A lot 60.6 (57.5, 63.7) 64.6 (60.9, 68.1) 19.8 (17.7, 22.0) 23.2 (19.9, 26.8)

Some 32.2 (29.3, 35.3) 27.3 (24.3, 30.6) 50.9 (48.3, 53.6) 45.4 (42.1, 48.8)

A little/not at all 7.2 (5.6, 9.2) 8.1 (6.4, 10.1) 29.3 (26.4, 32.4) 31.4 (28.6, 34.4)

 Some College A lot 61.4 (58.4, 64.3) 69.2 (65.3, 72.9) 19.1 (16.4, 22.1) 22.5 (19.6, 25.8)

Some 33.4 (30.8, 36.1) 24.4 (21.2, 27.8) 50.6 (47.4, 53.7) 47.6 (43.4, 51.9)

A little/not at all 5.2 (3.3, 8.1) 6.4 (3.9, 10.4) 30.3 (27.6, 33.2) 29.9 (26.4, 33.6)

 College Graduate A lot 68.7 (66.4, 71.0) 74.8 (71.4, 77.9) 13.7 (12.1, 15.5) 18.0 (15.6, 20.8)

Some 28.3 (26.0, 30.6) 22.0 (19.1, 25.2) 53.4 (50.9, 56.0) 51.3 (47.6, 55.0)

A little/not at all 3.0 (2.2, 4.1) 3.2 (2.1, 4.8) 32.8 (30.6, 35.2) 30.7 (27.1, 34.5)

(Table 11 continued on next page)
44

Table 11 Trust in Sources of Information, by Sociodemographics (continued) 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

How much would you trust information about health or medical topics from...

 Newspaper Magazine

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total A lot 13.1 (12.0, 14.2) 18.9 (17.4, 20.6) 15.9 (14.8, 17.1) 19.7 (18.2, 21.2)

Some 50.3 (48.6, 52.0) 51.9 (49.8, 53.9) 50.3 (48.7, 51.8) 51.1 (49.2, 53.1)

A little/not at all 36.6 (35.2, 38.0) 29.2 (27.2, 31.2) 33.9 (32.5, 35.2) 29.2 (27.3, 31.1)

 Gender 

 Male A lot 12.3 (10.7, 14.0) 16.5 (14.2, 19.1) 14.1 (12.4, 16.0) 18.1 (15.7, 20.7)

Some 46.6 (44.1, 49.0) 50.8 (47.4, 54.3) 47.1 (44.9, 49.4) 47.8 (44.0, 51.7)

A little/not at all 41.2 (39.2, 43.2) 32.7 (29.3, 36.3) 38.8 (36.8, 40.9) 34.1 (30.9, 37.5)

 Female A lot 13.9 (12.4, 15.5) 21.3 (19.2, 23.5) 17.5 (16.2, 19.0) 21.2 (19.2, 23.3)

Some 53.8 (51.6, 56.0) 52.8 (50.4, 55.3) 53.2 (51.4, 54.9) 54.3 (51.7, 56.9)

A little/not at all 32.3 (30.3, 34.3) 25.9 (23.9, 28.0) 29.3 (27.5, 31.2) 24.6 (22.7, 26.5)

 Age Group 

 18-34 A lot 16.4 (14.2, 18.8) 20.8 (17.5, 24.4) 17.5 (15.3, 19.9) 18.0 (15.1, 21.3)

Some 51.2 (47.9, 54.5) 51.4 (46.3, 56.5) 50.0 (47.0, 53.0) 52.0 (46.8, 57.1)

A little/not at all 32.4 (29.6, 35.4) 27.8 (23.6, 32.5) 32.5 (29.9, 35.3) 30.0 (26.0, 34.4)

 35-49 A lot 12.1 (10.3, 14.2) 21.6 (18.3, 25.2) 17.0 (14.8, 19.4) 23.2 (20.1, 26.5)

Some 52.9 (50.6, 55.1) 53.6 (49.6, 57.5) 54.0 (51.4, 56.6) 53.0 (49.2, 56.7)

A little/not at all 35.0 (32.9, 37.2) 24.9 (21.5, 28.6) 29.0 (26.9, 31.1) 23.9 (20.4, 27.7)

 50-64 A lot 11.2 (9.3, 13.4) 16.4 (14.1, 19.0) 14.6 (12.6, 16.8) 20.6 (18.5, 22.9)

Some 50.9 (48.4, 53.5) 55.2 (52.1, 58.2) 51.8 (48.9, 54.6) 52.6 (49.5, 55.6)

A little/not at all 37.8 (34.9, 40.9) 28.4 (25.1, 32.0) 33.7 (31.1, 36.4) 26.8 (23.9, 30.0)

 65-79 A lot 10.5 (7.6, 14.2) 14.8 (12.0, 18.2) 12.6 (10.0, 15.9) 15.8 (13.1, 18.8)

Some 44.4 (40.1, 48.8) 46.0 (42.3, 49.8) 43.4 (39.1, 47.8) 45.0 (41.4, 48.7)

A little/not at all 45.1 (40.7, 49.6) 39.1 (35.2, 43.2) 44.0 (39.9, 48.2) 39.2 (35.2, 43.4)

 80+ A lot 13.9 (10.0, 19.1) 13.7 (9.7, 19.0) 11.9 (7.7, 17.9) 10.8 (7.7, 15.1)

Some 35.5 (28.9, 42.6) 40.8 (34.5, 47.5) 32.9 (27.6, 38.7) 40.1 (32.8, 47.9)

A little/not at all 50.6 (43.6, 57.6) 45.5 (38.8, 52.4) 55.2 (48.7, 61.6) 49.0 (41.7, 56.4)

 Race/Ethnicity 

 White, non-Hispanic A lot 11.7 (10.4, 13.1) 18.7 (17.1, 20.3) 14.2 (12.9, 15.6) 18.9 (17.2, 20.6)

Some 53.3 (51.5, 55.1) 53.8 (51.7, 55.9) 53.7 (51.8, 55.5) 53.4 (51.2, 55.6)

A little/not at all 35.0 (33.3, 36.8) 27.5 (25.4, 29.7) 32.1 (30.6, 33.7) 27.7 (25.6, 30.0)

 Black, non-Hispanic A lot 18.8 (14.9, 23.4) 24.3 (18.9, 30.7) 24.9 (20.6, 29.8) 28.5 (22.9, 34.9)

Some 48.2 (43.5, 53.0) 47.5 (40.8, 54.2) 45.5 (40.4, 50.7) 43.0 (37.3, 48.9)

A little/not at all 33.0 (29.1, 37.1) 28.2 (22.3, 35.0) 29.6 (25.9, 33.6) 28.5 (22.8, 35.0)

 Hispanic A lot 15.5 (12.6, 19.0) 18.3 (13.1, 25.1) 18.1 (15.0, 21.8) 19.0 (14.5, 24.6)

Some 41.5 (36.7, 46.6) 42.2 (34.8, 49.9) 41.0 (36.8, 45.4) 41.9 (34.6, 49.6)

A little/not at all 42.9 (38.0, 48.0) 39.5 (32.1, 47.3) 40.8 (36.2, 45.7) 39.0 (32.5, 46.0)

 Non-Hispanic Other A lot 18.8 (13.8, 25.1) 18.2 (12.9, 25.0) 19.5 (15.0, 25.0) 20.2 (14.6, 27.4)

Some 40.4 (33.9, 47.3) 56.5 (47.0, 65.6) 42.8 (35.7, 50.3) 52.1 (42.7, 61.4)

A little/not at all 40.8 (34.8, 47.0) 25.3 (18.1, 34.0) 37.6 (30.6, 45.3) 27.6 (19.7, 37.3)
45

How much would you trust information about health or medical topics from...

 Newspaper Magazine

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Household Income 

 Less than $25,000 A lot 16.2 (14.0, 18.8) 15.3 (11.7, 19.7) 18.0 (15.3, 20.9) 15.3 (13.0, 18.0)

Some 40.1 (37.3, 43.1) 44.5 (38.9, 50.2) 40.9 (37.8, 44.1) 45.5 (40.6, 50.4)

A little/not at all 43.6 (40.8, 46.5) 40.3 (34.6, 46.2) 41.2 (38.4, 43.9) 39.2 (34.3, 44.4)

 $25,000 to < $50,000 A lot 12.7 (10.6, 15.2) 18.3 (15.3, 21.6) 15.9 (13.9, 18.1) 18.6 (15.6, 22.1)

Some 50.4 (47.3, 53.5) 53.3 (48.9, 57.7) 50.3 (47.1, 53.4) 50.7 (46.4, 55.0)

A little/not at all 36.9 (34.2, 39.6) 28.4 (24.7, 32.5) 33.8 (31.2, 36.6) 30.7 (26.6, 35.0)

 $50,000 to < $75,000 A lot 11.1 (9.4, 13.2) 22.7 (18.7, 27.2) 15.8 (13.4, 18.5) 23.3 (19.4, 27.8)

Some 59.0 (54.3, 63.5) 52.8 (47.3, 58.3) 59.7 (55.1, 64.1) 52.5 (46.8, 58.2)

A little/not at all 29.9 (25.8, 34.3) 24.5 (20.3, 29.2) 24.5 (20.9, 28.6) 24.2 (20.6, 28.1)

 $75,000 or more A lot 10.8 (9.1, 12.7) 24.0 (20.6, 27.8) 13.5 (11.7, 15.4) 24.2 (21.1, 27.7)

Some 58.9 (56.1, 61.6) 54.5 (50.2, 58.7) 58.7 (56.1, 61.3) 53.6 (49.2, 57.8)

A little/not at all 30.4 (27.9, 32.9) 21.5 (18.0, 25.5) 27.8 (25.6, 30.1) 22.2 (18.5, 26.4)

 Education 

 Less than High School A lot 15.0 (12.1, 18.4) 15.9 (12.2, 20.5) 17.3 (13.9, 21.3) 16.0 (11.4, 21.9)

Some 35.5 (30.9, 40.3) 42.5 (35.5, 49.9) 33.0 (28.9, 37.4) 36.5 (29.6, 43.9)

A little/not at all 49.5 (45.0, 54.0) 41.5 (35.2, 48.2) 49.8 (45.7, 53.9) 47.6 (40.5, 54.8)

 High School Graduate A lot 13.3 (11.6, 15.2) 20.4 (17.2, 24.0) 16.0 (14.4, 17.7) 21.6 (18.3, 25.4)

Some 47.7 (44.7, 50.8) 47.3 (43.3, 51.4) 47.6 (45.0, 50.2) 47.1 (43.6, 50.6)

A little/not at all 39.0 (36.5, 41.4) 32.3 (28.3, 36.5) 36.4 (34.2, 38.7) 31.3 (27.5, 35.3)

 Some College A lot 14.4 (11.9, 17.3) 17.7 (15.4, 20.2) 16.6 (13.9, 19.7) 18.2 (15.8, 20.9)

Some 53.8 (51.0, 56.6) 56.3 (52.8, 59.7) 56.3 (53.4, 59.1) 56.7 (52.9, 60.5)

A little/not at all 31.8 (29.4, 34.3) 26.0 (22.9, 29.4) 27.1 (24.8, 29.5) 25.1 (21.9, 28.5)

 College Graduate A lot 10.7 (9.3, 12.3) 21.2 (18.6, 24.0) 14.5 (13.0, 16.1) 21.6 (18.6, 25.0)

Some 60.6 (58.4, 62.9) 57.1 (53.5, 60.7) 60.4 (57.8, 63.0) 56.3 (52.1, 60.3)

A little/not at all 28.6 (26.0, 31.4) 21.7 (18.9, 24.9) 25.1 (22.6, 27.7) 22.1 (18.4, 26.3)

(Table 11 continued on next page)
46

Table 11 Trust in Sources of Information, by Sociodemographics (continued) 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

How much would you trust information about health or medical topics from...

Radio Internet

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total A lot 9.9 (8.9, 11.0) 12.3 (10.9, 13.8) 23.9 (22.5, 25.4) 18.9 (16.7, 21.4)

Some 44.0 (42.2, 45.9) 45.7 (44.2, 47.3) 40.9 (39.3, 42.6) 53.8 (51.1, 56.5)

A little/not at all 46.1 (44.3, 47.8) 42.0 (39.9, 44.2) 35.1 (33.7, 36.6) 27.3 (25.4, 29.2)

 Gender 

 Male A lot 9.9 (8.4, 11.7) 13.0 (10.8, 15.6) 23.2 (21.3, 25.1) 15.8 (12.8, 19.4)

Some 42.4 (39.9, 44.9) 43.0 (40.0, 46.0) 40.2 (38.0, 42.5) 51.2 (47.4, 55.0)

A little/not at all 47.7 (45.3, 50.1) 44.0 (39.9, 48.2) 36.6 (34.3, 39.0) 33.0 (29.4, 36.8)

 Female A lot 9.9 (8.8, 11.1) 11.5 (10.1, 13.2) 24.6 (22.7, 26.7) 21.8 (19.2, 24.6)

Some 45.6 (43.5, 47.7) 48.4 (46.4, 50.3) 41.6 (39.5, 43.7) 56.2 (52.5, 59.8)

A little/not at all 44.5 (42.5, 46.6) 40.1 (38.4, 41.8) 33.8 (32.1, 35.5) 22.0 (19.6, 24.7)

 Age Group 

 18-34 A lot 11.8 (9.8, 14.1) 11.4 (8.6, 15.0) 27.9 (25.5, 30.5) 14.6 (11.2, 18.8)

Some 45.0 (41.8, 48.2) 43.3 (39.6, 47.1) 46.1 (43.1, 49.1) 55.8 (50.0, 61.4)

A little/not at all 43.2 (40.3, 46.1) 45.3 (40.8, 49.8) 26.0 (23.5, 28.7) 29.6 (26.0, 33.6)

 35-49 A lot 10.0 (8.2, 12.2) 15.7 (13.4, 18.3) 27.7 (25.2, 30.4) 22.4 (18.3, 27.0)

Some 48.7 (46.2, 51.2) 49.6 (45.8, 53.5) 46.4 (43.5, 49.4) 53.2 (49.1, 57.3)

A little/not at all 41.2 (38.5, 44.1) 34.7 (31.1, 38.4) 25.9 (23.7, 28.1) 24.4 (20.9, 28.2)

 50-64 A lot 9.5 (7.5, 11.8) 10.6 (8.6, 13.2) 24.2 (21.3, 27.4) 21.1 (17.8, 24.8)

Some 45.7 (42.6, 48.7) 49.6 (46.5, 52.6) 40.7 (37.7, 43.8) 55.1 (51.3, 58.8)

A little/not at all 44.9 (42.0, 47.9) 39.8 (36.3, 43.4) 35.1 (31.9, 38.4) 23.8 (20.8, 27.2)

 65-79 A lot 6.2 (4.2, 8.9) 10.2 (7.4, 13.9) 9.0 (7.3, 11.1) 20.8 (15.8, 26.7)

Some 33.3 (29.3, 37.5) 38.4 (34.4, 42.6) 21.6 (18.4, 25.1) 41.4 (35.7, 47.4)

A little/not at all 60.5 (55.9, 65.0) 51.3 (46.4, 56.2) 69.4 (65.4, 73.2) 37.8 (32.2, 43.7)

 80+ A lot 8.2 (4.7, 14.1) 4.6 (2.3, 8.8) 5.8 (3.1, 10.8) 12.0 (5.2, 25.5)

Some 21.5 (15.9, 28.5) 29.9 (22.1, 39.2) 15.2 (10.4, 21.6) 38.7 (16.5, 66.9)

A little/not at all 70.3 (64.1, 75.8) 65.5 (56.8, 73.3) 79.0 (72.1, 84.6) 49.3 (26.3, 72.6)

 Race/Ethnicity 

 White, non-Hispanic A lot 8.0 (6.7, 9.5) 11.3 (9.9, 12.8) 23.1 (21.4, 24.9) 17.5 (15.4, 19.8)

Some 46.3 (44.2, 48.3) 46.8 (44.7, 49.0) 43.3 (41.4, 45.2) 54.7 (51.6, 57.8)

A little/not at all 45.8 (43.6, 47.9) 41.9 (39.4, 44.4) 33.6 (31.9, 35.5) 27.8 (25.4, 30.4)

 Black, non-Hispanic A lot 15.4 (12.1, 19.5) 15.7 (10.9, 22.1) 29.4 (24.9, 34.2) 25.8 (18.0, 35.3)

Some 41.0 (36.1, 46.2) 46.2 (39.9, 52.5) 36.6 (31.2, 42.3) 48.9 (37.7, 60.1)

A little/not at all 43.5 (38.8, 48.3) 38.1 (31.3, 45.5) 34.0 (29.7, 38.7) 25.4 (17.5, 35.3)

 Hispanic A lot 16.3 (13.6, 19.4) 15.9 (11.2, 22.2) 24.4 (20.4, 28.9) 25.4 (17.3, 35.6)

Some 38.4 (34.8, 42.0) 39.2 (32.1, 46.7) 33.0 (28.7, 37.6) 45.4 (34.5, 56.9)

A little/not at all 45.3 (40.9, 49.9) 44.9 (37.5, 52.5) 42.6 (38.3, 47.0) 29.2 (19.7, 40.9)

 Non-Hispanic Other A lot 14.0 (10.0, 19.4) 11.8 (7.7, 17.7) 27.2 (21.2, 34.2) 21.3 (15.3, 28.9)

Some 40.8 (33.6, 48.4) 43.7 (34.2, 53.8) 38.4 (31.7, 45.5) 58.5 (48.3, 68.1)

A little/not at all 45.2 (37.9, 52.6) 44.4 (35.2, 54.0) 34.4 (28.2, 41.2) 20.1 (13.1, 29.7)
47

How much would you trust information about health or medical topics from...

Radio Internet

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Household Income 

 Less than $25,000 A lot 13.0 (10.7, 15.8) 12.2 (8.9, 16.4) 20.5 (17.9, 23.3) 16.5 (11.9, 22.4)

Some 35.5 (32.2, 39.0) 39.6 (34.8, 44.6) 29.5 (26.4, 32.8) 49.4 (42.1, 56.7)

A little/not at all 51.4 (48.4, 54.5) 48.2 (42.8, 53.6) 50.0 (46.9, 53.2) 34.1 (27.7, 41.1)

 $25,000 to < $50,000 A lot 9.5 (7.8, 11.5) 13.0 (9.7, 17.1) 23.6 (21.4, 26.1) 22.7 (18.3, 27.8)

Some 45.0 (42.2, 47.9) 46.4 (42.5, 50.4) 41.5 (38.8, 44.3) 48.7 (42.6, 54.8)

A little/not at all 45.5 (42.6, 48.5) 40.6 (36.6, 44.8) 34.9 (32.4, 37.4) 28.6 (24.3, 33.4)

 $50,000 to < $75,000 A lot 8.6 (6.8, 10.8) 14.1 (11.0, 17.9) 28.2 (25.0, 31.7) 20.4 (16.7, 24.7)

Some 54.1 (50.0, 58.1) 47.9 (43.5, 52.3) 47.6 (42.5, 52.7) 49.6 (44.1, 55.2)

A little/not at all 37.4 (33.7, 41.1) 38.0 (34.0, 42.2) 24.1 (20.5, 28.2) 30.0 (25.9, 34.4)

 $75,000 or more A lot 7.1 (5.6, 9.1) 12.5 (10.3, 15.1) 26.7 (23.9, 29.7) 20.1 (16.6, 24.0)

Some 50.1 (47.0, 53.2) 49.8 (45.4, 54.1) 52.3 (48.9, 55.6) 58.7 (54.1, 63.2)

A little/not at all 42.8 (39.8, 45.8) 37.8 (34.1, 41.6) 21.0 (18.5, 23.8) 21.2 (17.7, 25.1)

 Education 

 Less than High School A lot 15.3 (12.4, 18.6) 15.6 (10.1, 23.3) 19.9 (16.3, 24.2) 17.3 (9.6, 29.0)

Some 32.5 (28.0, 37.3) 33.7 (27.8, 40.1) 21.7 (19.0, 24.8) 43.9 (30.7, 58.0)

A little/not at all 52.3 (47.6, 56.9) 50.7 (43.9, 57.6) 58.3 (54.1, 62.4) 38.8 (26.3, 53.1)

 High School Graduate A lot 10.7 (9.3, 12.4) 13.7 (11.0, 16.9) 24.3 (22.1, 26.7) 22.3 (17.6, 28.0)

Some 41.7 (38.6, 44.9) 43.4 (40.4, 46.5) 35.5 (32.7, 38.4) 52.1 (46.2, 58.0)

A little/not at all 47.5 (44.7, 50.4) 42.9 (39.2, 46.6) 40.2 (37.7, 42.7) 25.5 (21.1, 30.5)

 Some College A lot 8.9 (6.4, 12.2) 9.8 (7.8, 12.3) 24.5 (22.1, 27.0) 16.0 (12.7, 20.0)

Some 46.9 (43.7, 50.2) 49.2 (45.6, 52.9) 48.4 (45.2, 51.5) 54.8 (50.6, 58.9)

A little/not at all 44.2 (41.4, 47.1) 40.9 (37.1, 44.9) 27.2 (24.7, 29.7) 29.2 (25.9, 32.7)

 College Graduate A lot 6.6 (5.5, 7.9) 12.5 (10.5, 14.9) 26.2 (23.8, 28.6) 20.6 (17.3, 24.3)

Some 53.5 (51.2, 55.7) 50.0 (46.3, 53.7) 53.7 (51.0, 56.4) 54.4 (51.0, 57.7)

A little/not at all 39.9 (37.4, 42.5) 37.5 (34.0, 41.1) 20.1 (17.9, 22.6) 25.1 (22.2, 28.2)

(Table 11 continued on next page)
48

Table 11 Trust in Sources of Information, by Sociodemographics (continued) 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Howmuchwould you trustinformation

 about health or medical topics from...

TV

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI)

Total A lot 20.0 (18.8, 21.4) 20.8 (19.3, 22.3)

Some 51.0 (49.2, 52.7) 51.2 (49.1, 53.2)

A little/not at all 29.0 (27.5, 30.5) 28.1 (26.3, 30.0)

 Gender 

 Male A lot 16.9 (15.0, 19.1) 19.1 (17.0, 21.3)

Some 48.5 (46.3, 50.7) 47.2 (44.0, 50.5)

A little/not at all 34.6 (32.4, 36.7) 33.7 (30.4, 37.1)

 Female A lot 22.9 (21.2, 24.8) 22.3 (20.3, 24.5)

Some 53.2 (50.8, 55.7) 54.8 (51.9, 57.6)

A little/not at all 23.8 (22.0, 25.7) 22.9 (20.9, 25.1)

 Age Group 

 18-34 A lot 23.7 (21.6, 25.9) 21.1 (18.0, 24.6)

Some 49.7 (46.8, 52.6) 49.9 (45.8, 54.1)

A little/not at all 26.6 (24.6, 28.8) 28.9 (24.9, 33.4)

 35-49 A lot 20.1 (17.6, 22.7) 24.5 (21.8, 27.5)

Some 54.8 (51.9, 57.6) 52.1 (48.6, 55.5)

A little/not at all 25.1 (22.5, 27.9) 23.4 (20.3, 26.9)

 50-64 A lot 17.4 (15.4, 19.7) 19.7 (17.1, 22.5)

Some 51.6 (49.1, 54.1) 54.1 (51.1, 57.0)

A little/not at all 31.0 (28.4, 33.6) 26.3 (23.1, 29.7)

 65-79 A lot 15.8 (12.6, 19.5) 16.1 (13.7, 18.9)

Some 47.2 (42.9, 51.6) 48.2 (44.7, 51.8)

A little/not at all 37.0 (33.1, 41.1) 35.6 (31.9, 39.6)

 80+ A lot 20.1 (15.0, 26.5) 9.2 (6.7, 12.4)

Some 36.2 (29.9, 43.1) 46.8 (39.5, 54.2)

A little/not at all 43.7 (36.7, 50.9) 44.1 (37.4, 51.0)

 Race/Ethnicity 

 White, non-Hispanic A lot 16.3 (14.9, 17.8) 18.0 (16.3, 19.8)

Some 53.8 (52.0, 55.6) 54.6 (52.4, 56.8)

A little/not at all 29.9 (28.2, 31.6) 27.4 (25.4, 29.5)

 Black, non-Hispanic A lot 33.2 (27.7, 39.3) 31.9 (26.2, 38.3)

Some 45.9 (40.8, 51.0) 43.1 (36.6, 49.9)

A little/not at all 20.9 (17.5, 24.7) 24.9 (20.1, 30.5)

 Hispanic A lot 29.5 (25.7, 33.6) 26.1 (21.0, 32.0)

Some 42.9 (38.7, 47.3) 43.8 (38.4, 49.3)

A little/not at all 27.6 (24.1, 31.3) 30.1 (24.4, 36.6)

 Non-Hispanic Other A lot 26.9 (20.7, 34.1) 26.6 (19.2, 35.7) 

Some 47.5 (40.8, 54.3) 44.1 (35.4, 53.2)

A little/not at all 25.6 (20.5, 31.4) 29.3 (22.1, 37.7)
49

Howmuchwould you trustinformation

 about health or medical topics from...

TV

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Household Income 

 Less than $25,000 A lot 26.9 (23.5, 30.6) 23.6 (19.4, 28.4) 

Some 44.6 (41.3, 48.0) 42.6 (37.6, 47.8)

A little/not at all 28.5 (25.3, 32.0) 33.8 (29.4, 38.4)

 $25,000 to < $50,000 A lot 19.1 (16.9, 21.5) 22.3 (19.2, 25.7) 

Some 52.6 (49.7, 55.5) 52.5 (48.8, 56.2)

A little/not at all 28.3 (25.9, 30.9) 25.2 (21.6, 29.3)

 $50,000 to < $75,000 A lot 17.5 (15.2, 20.1) 22.7 (18.6, 27.4) 

Some 56.2 (51.8, 60.6) 52.2 (46.7, 57.6)

A little/not at all 26.3 (22.9, 29.9) 25.1 (20.8, 29.8)

 $75,000 or more A lot 13.7 (11.7, 16.0) 19.6 (16.2, 23.5) 

Some 57.1 (53.7, 60.4) 56.4 (51.0, 61.7)

A little/not at all 29.2 (26.2, 32.4) 24.0 (19.9, 28.5)

 Education 

 Less than High School A lot 28.8 (25.2, 32.6) 21.9 (17.6, 26.9) 

Some 36.1 (32.2, 40.2) 42.0 (37.0, 47.2)

A little/not at all 35.2 (30.9, 39.6) 36.1 (31.3, 41.2)

 High School Graduate A lot 21.6 (19.7, 23.8) 24.2 (20.8, 27.9)

Some 52.5 (49.6, 55.4) 48.8 (45.3, 52.3)

A little/not at all 25.8 (23.7, 28.1) 27.0 (24.3, 29.9)

 Some College A lot 20.6 (17.9, 23.5) 20.1 (17.6, 23.0) 

Some 52.6 (49.4, 55.8) 53.4 (49.5, 57.2)

A little/not at all 26.8 (24.1, 29.7) 26.5 (23.5, 29.8)

 College Graduate A lot 11.7 (10.2, 13.3) 17.7 (14.9, 20.8) 

Some 58.6 (55.4, 61.7) 56.8 (52.5, 61.0)

A little/not at all 29.7 (26.7, 32.9) 25.5 (22.0, 29.3)
50

Table 12 Confidence in Obtaining Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

How confident are you that you could get advice or information

 about cancer if you needed it? 

Completely/Very Somewhat/A Little 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

 % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 62.6 (61.1, 64.1) 68.1 (66.0, 70.1) 35.8 (34.4, 37.2) 29.8 (28.0, 31.7) 

 Gender 

Male 62.1 (59.9, 64.3) 66.6 (63.2, 69.8) 35.9 (33.9, 37.9) 30.8 (27.8, 34.0) 

Female 63.0 (61.0, 65.0) 69.4 (67.2, 71.6) 35.7 (33.7, 37.7) 28.9 (26.8, 31.2) 

 Age Group 

18-34 63.3 (60.7, 65.8) 72.5 (68.3, 76.3) 35.7 (33.4, 38.0) 25.8 (22.4, 29.5) 

35-49 61.9 (59.1, 64.6) 65.8 (62.5, 68.9) 36.7 (34.1, 39.4) 31.4 (28.3, 34.7) 

 50-64 62.7 (59.0, 66.3) 69.7 (66.1, 73.1) 35.7 (32.1, 39.5) 28.4 (25.3, 31.8) 

65-79 63.5 (59.3, 67.5) 63.2 (59.2, 67.0) 33.4 (29.6, 37.5) 34.9 (31.0, 39.0) 

80+ 58.2 (50.4, 65.7) 56.2 (49.3, 62.8) 37.7 (30.0, 46.1) 43.0 (36.4, 49.9) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 65.7 (64.0, 67.4) 71.7 (69.4, 74.0) 33.2 (31.5, 34.9) 27.2 (24.9, 29.6) 

Black, non-Hispanic 65.4 (60.8, 69.9) 68.7 (61.8, 74.8) 32.5 (28.3, 36.9) 28.5 (22.7, 35.0) 

Hispanic 48.1 (43.6, 52.5) 54.1 (49.2, 59.0) 48.5 (43.8, 53.3) 40.5 (36.2, 45.0) 

Non-Hispanic Other 53.1 (45.5, 60.5) 67.6 (59.2, 75.0) 44.5 (37.1, 52.1) 30.1 (23.0, 38.4) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 58.2 (54.9, 61.5) 60.5 (55.6, 65.2) 38.4 (35.2, 41.7) 35.7 (31.5, 40.3) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 61.4 (58.3, 64.4) 66.6 (63.1, 70.0) 37.4 (34.4, 40.6) 32.1 (29.1, 35.3) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 65.6 (62.1, 69.0) 72.0 (67.6, 76.1) 33.4 (30.1, 36.9) 26.6 (22.8, 30.8) 

$75,000 or more 69.5 (66.2, 72.6) 77.2 (73.5, 80.6) 30.1 (27.0, 33.4) 21.7 (18.9, 24.8) 

 Education 

Less than High School 53.2 (48.5, 57.9) 59.8 (54.8, 64.7) 42.2 (37.4, 47.1) 35.9 (31.3, 40.7) 

High School Graduate 59.3 (56.7, 61.9) 67.2 (63.3, 70.9) 39.5 (37.0, 42.1) 31.2 (27.7, 35.0) 

Some College 67.4 (64.2, 70.3) 69.3 (65.6, 72.8) 31.6 (28.7, 34.6) 28.5 (25.1, 32.3) 

College Graduate or Beyond 68.7 (65.9, 71.4) 75.7 (72.4, 78.8) 30.7 (28.1, 33.5) 23.7 (20.7, 27.0) 
51

Not At All

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI)

1.6 (1.3, 2.0) 2.1 (1.5, 2.8)

2.0 (1.4, 2.8) 2.6 (1.6, 4.1)

1.3 (0.9, 1.8) 1.6 (1.2, 2.2)

1.0 (0.6, 1.9) 1.8 (0.8, 4.1)

1.4 (0.9, 2.2) 2.8 (1.6, 4.7)

1.6 (1.0, 2.5) 1.9 (1.1, 3.1)

3.1 (2.0, 4.7) 1.9 (1.2, 2.9)

4.0 (2.0, 8.0) 0.8 (0.3, 2.1)

1.1 (0.8, 1.6) 1.0 (0.7, 1.5)

2.1 (1.0, 4.4) 2.9 (0.6, 12.5)

3.4 (2.1, 5.6) 5.4 (3.2, 8.7)

2.5 (1.2, 4.9) 2.3 (0.8, 5.9)

3.4 (2.4, 4.8) 3.8 (2.4, 5.8)

1.2 (0.7, 1.9) 1.3 (0.7, 2.4)

0.9 (0.4, 2.1) 1.3 (0.6, 3.0)

0.4 (0.1, 1.0) 1.0 (0.2, 6.0)

4.6 (3.2, 6.6) 4.3 (2.5, 7.3)

1.2 (0.8, 1.7) 1.5 (0.9, 2.7)

1.0 (0.6, 1.8) 2.2 (1.1, 4.4)

0.6 (0.3, 1.1) 0.6 (0.3, 1.0)

The majority of respondents in both 2003 and 

2005 were confident in their ability to get advice or 

information about cancer.
52

Table 13 Barriers to Information Seeking, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Barriers to Information Seeking: 

Do you Agree Strongly or Somewhat that the Information... 

Took a Lot of Effort to Find Was Frustrating to Obtain 

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) 

 Total 48.4 (46.2, 50.5) 37.3 (34.4, 40.3) 41.9 (39.7, 44.1) 26.7 (24.4, 29.1) 

 Gender 

Male 46.9 (43.2, 50.8) 37.6 (31.9, 43.6) 40.2 (36.5, 44.0) 26.0 (21.5, 31.1) 

Female 49.3 (46.3, 52.3) 37.1 (34.7, 39.6) 43.0 (40.4, 45.6) 27.1 (24.9, 29.5) 

 Age Group 

18-34 44.7 (40.5, 48.8) 35.7 (29.0, 43.0) 39.9 (35.7, 44.3) 22.1 (16.7, 28.7) 

35-49 46.1 (42.4, 49.9) 34.4 (30.2, 39.0) 41.2 (37.7, 44.7) 25.2 (21.6, 29.2) 

50-64 51.7 (47.9, 55.6) 39.1 (34.5, 43.8) 45.9 (41.5, 50.4) 30.7 (26.7, 35.0) 

65-79 55.7 (50.5, 60.8) 44.8 (39.4, 50.3) 39.5 (33.4, 45.9) 30.8 (25.8, 36.3) 

80+ 59.1 (45.8, 71.1) 47.0 (32.3, 62.2) 45.3 (34.7, 56.4) 41.3 (28.2, 55.8) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 47.5 (44.5, 50.5) 33.4 (30.0, 37.0) 42.0 (39.5, 44.6) 24.8 (22.1, 27.7) 

Black, non-Hispanic 55.0 (47.6, 62.1) 41.8 (34.8, 49.3) 45.5 (39.2, 51.8) 29.6 (21.6, 39.2) 

Hispanic 53.3 (46.0, 60.5) 52.6 (42.0, 63.0) 41.7 (34.0, 49.7) 31.6 (21.9, 43.3) 

Non-Hispanic Other 49.3 (39.2, 59.5) 49.8 (41.5, 58.0) 39.0 (30.0, 48.7) 38.7 (30.4, 47.6) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 53.6 (48.2, 58.9) 47.8 (41.5, 54.1) 47.4 (42.0, 52.8) 34.1 (29.4, 39.1) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 52.7 (48.1, 57.2) 40.0 (34.1, 46.1) 45.4 (41.2, 49.7) 27.1 (22.1, 32.9) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 46.8 (41.6, 52.1) 32.5 (26.4, 39.2) 41.8 (36.5, 47.3) 24.3 (19.1, 30.4) 

$75,000 or more 41.1 (36.1, 46.4) 29.4 (24.3, 35.1) 34.7 (31.1, 38.4) 22.6 (18.2, 27.7) 

 Education 

Less than High School 64.5 (54.6, 73.3) 56.6 (47.1, 65.8) 56.7 (48.0, 65.0) 44.6 (34.5, 55.2) 

High School Graduate 53.1 (48.3, 57.9) 42.1 (36.7, 47.7) 45.0 (40.3, 49.9) 29.5 (25.2, 34.2) 

Some College 46.0 (42.2, 49.8) 35.3 (30.0, 40.9) 39.9 (36.6, 43.3) 23.3 (19.3, 27.9) 

College Graduate or Beyond 42.3 (37.8, 46.8) 29.1 (25.2, 33.3) 36.9 (33.4, 40.5) 23.7 (19.7, 28.2) 
53

Quality Causes you Concern Was Too Hard to Understand

HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005 HINTS 2003 HINTS 2005

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

58.3 (56.4, 60.1) 47.5 (45.2, 49.8) 37.7 (35.4, 40.0) 23.7 (22.0, 25.6)

59.1 (56.3, 61.8) 47.9 (43.6, 52.3) 38.0 (35.1, 41.1) 23.4 (20.3, 26.8)

57.7 (55.1, 60.3) 47.2 (44.5, 49.8) 37.4 (34.4, 40.5) 24.0 (21.7, 26.4)

61.0 (56.4, 65.5) 47.3 (41.2, 53.4) 37.0 (32.8, 41.5) 17.2 (13.7, 21.5)

54.4 (51.1, 57.6) 45.4 (41.6, 49.3) 37.1 (33.3, 41.2) 23.9 (20.4, 27.8)

59.7 (55.6, 63.6) 45.9 (41.5, 50.4) 37.5 (33.9, 41.3) 27.0 (22.9, 31.5)

58.0 (52.1, 63.7) 57.6 (52.1, 63.0) 38.8 (33.2, 44.7) 29.1 (24.1, 34.7)

62.3 (50.6, 72.7) 52.0 (39.4, 64.3) 50.2 (38.6, 61.7) 41.0 (27.7, 55.8)

56.7 (54.5, 58.9) 43.8 (41.0, 46.7) 36.1 (33.5, 38.7) 21.5 (19.3, 23.9)

63.6 (57.6, 69.3) 61.0 (51.6, 69.6) 42.6 (35.4, 50.1) 23.7 (16.8, 32.3)

69.2 (63.2, 74.7) 59.2 (46.6, 70.7) 45.2 (38.8, 51.7) 36.1 (25.3, 48.5)

59.6 (50.1, 68.4) 52.3 (42.6, 61.8) 42.8 (34.5, 51.6) 26.3 (19.4, 34.7)

64.7 (60.6, 68.7) 63.6 (57.4, 69.3) 50.4 (45.1, 55.8) 34.9 (29.3, 40.9)

60.1 (55.9, 64.1) 49.2 (44.1, 54.4) 42.9 (39.3, 46.6) 25.0 (21.0, 29.4)

59.6 (54.4, 64.6) 41.1 (35.2, 47.2) 32.5 (28.1, 37.3) 20.4 (16.4, 25.0)

52.2 (47.6, 56.7) 38.9 (33.3, 44.8) 26.2 (22.6, 30.2) 14.8 (11.1, 19.5)

70.3 (63.0, 76.7) 64.9 (55.6, 73.1) 57.4 (49.5, 65.0) 43.8 (36.3, 51.5)

60.9 (56.8, 65.0) 55.4 (49.7, 61.0) 46.9 (41.3, 52.6) 32.8 (28.7, 37.2)

59.7 (55.9, 63.5) 42.9 (38.5, 47.5) 36.8 (33.3, 40.5) 21.3 (18.3, 24.6)

51.7 (48.5, 54.8) 40.7 (36.1, 45.4) 24.7 (21.4, 28.4) 12.3 (10.3, 14.6)
54

CANCER AWARENESS, KNOWLEDGE, AND BELIEFS

This section explores cancer awareness, knowledge, and 

beliefs from select items from HINTS 2003 and 2005. 

Prevention

Prevention Knowledge Among the American Public 

Estimates of Americans’ prevention awareness are 

summarized in Figure 10.

•	 In 2003, over half of respondents offered behavioral

strategies to this open-ended item (51.3% said “Eat 

better/better nutrition”; 59.0% said “Don’t smoke/

quit smoking”; and 60.8% gave other behavioral 

responses). However, 16.0% of respondents did not 

name a strategy to reduce their chances of getting 

cancer (“No/nothing”). 

Figure 10 Prevention Knowledge Among 

the American Public (2003)

Can you think of any thing people can do to reduce their 

chances of getting cancer? 

70

60

50

40

30

20

10

0 

% Respondents

n Eat better/better nutrition n Don’t smoke/quit smoking 

n No/nothing n Other

Note: Respondents could give multiple responses Estimated U.S. Population Percentage

Figure 11 Prevention Knowledge Among 

American Smokers: Exercise (2003)

Exercise can undo most of the effects of smoking. Would you 

say you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, 

strongly disagree or you have no opinion? 

n Agree, no opinion, don’t know n Disagree 

49.7% 50.3%

Figure 12 Prevention Knowledge Among American 

Smokers: Vitamin Use (2003)

Vitamins can undo most of the effects of smoking. Would you 

say you strongly agree, somewhat agree, somewhat disagree, 

strongly disagree or you have no opinion? 

n Agree, no opinion, don’t know n Disagree 

35.1% 64.9%

Cancer Prevention Knowledge Among 

American Smokers

Estimates of American smokers’ prevention knowledge with regard to exercise and vitamin use are summarized in Figures 11 and 12, respectively.

•	 In 2003, repondents who reported they were current

smokers were asked about the effects of specific 

health behaviors (exercise, vitamin use) on their 

cancer risk. Nearly half (49.7%) responded with either no opinion, don’t know, or agree with the statement that “Exercise can undo most of the effects of 

smoking.” Over one-third (35.1%) responded either 

no opinion, don’t know, or agree to the statement 

that “Vitamins can undo most of the effects of 

smoking.”
Cancer-Specific Knowledge 

Breast Cancer

•	 In 2003, women without a personal history of breast

cancer were asked about the recommended age at 

which to begin mammography screening and the 

frequency at which mammograms should be received. Figure 13 shows that less than half of the 

women (42.9%) correctly identified age 40 as the age 

at which most women should begin receiving mammograms; most incorrect responses were for ages younger 

than 40. 

•	 Map 3 provides converging evidence that most

women across the United States were not able to 

correctly identify the age at which they should start 

Figure 13 Knowledge of Age at Which to Begin 

Mammography (2003)

A mammogram is an x-ray of each breast to look for breast 

cancer. At what age are women supposed to start having 

mammograms? 

n Correct Answer (Age 40) n Incorrect Answer 

42.9% 57.1%

getting regular mammograms, with areas in the 

South and Southeast showing the lowest values.

•	 Figure 14 shows that most HINTS 2003 respondents

(73.1%) correctly identified every 1 to 2 years as 

the recommended frequency at which mammograms 

should be received. The most common incorrect 

response indicated more frequent screening (More 

than once a year; 10.1%).

•	 In contrast to knowledge of the age at which women

should start getting regular mammograms, Map 4 

shows that most women across the 

United States were able to correctly identify how 

often they should get mammograms.

Figure 14 Knowledge of Recommended Mammography Frequency (2003)

In general, once women start having mammograms, about how 

often should they have them? 

n Correct Answer (Every 1 to <2 years) n Incorrect Answer 

73.1% 26.9%

Map 3 Knowledge of Age at Which to Begin Mammogram (2003)

What age Should Women Start Getting Regular Mammograms?

HINTS 2003 BC-14

Responded “40”

High: 56%

Low: 35%

(% of women who 

correctly identified 40 as 

age to start mammograms)

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.

55

Map 4 Knowledge of Mammography Screening Frequency (2003)

How Often Should Women Be Getting Mammograms?

HINTS 2003 BC-14

Responded “1-2 yrs”

High: 79%

Low: 66%

(% of respondents who 

correctly identified 

appropriate frequency 

of mammograms)

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.
56

Colon Cancer

•	 In 2003 and 2005, respondents were asked to name

any tests that are used for secondary prevention of 

colon cancer. Figure 15 shows that 41.7% of the 

American public correctly identified either Fecal 

Occult Blood Tests or colonoscopy or sigmoidoscopy as a colon cancer screening test in 2003 while 

Figure 16 shows that this percentage increased to 

48.9% in 2005. In 2003 51.2% of respondents were 

not able to name a colon cancer screening test. This 

percentage decreased to 45% in 2005.

Figure 15 Knowledge of Tests to Detect 

Colon Cancer (2003)

Can you think of any tests that detect colon cancer? 

Anything Else? (2003) 

n Colonoscopy/Sigmoidoscopy/FOBT 

n No/Don’t Know/Refused/Not Ascertained n Other 

16.1%

41.7%

51.2%

Figure 16 Knowledge of Tests to Detect 

Colon Cancer (2005)

Can you think of any tests that detect colon cancer? 

n Colonoscopy/Sigmoidoscopy/FOBT 

n No/Don’t Know/Refused/Not Ascertained n Other 

48.9% 17.9%

45%

Figure 17 Awareness of Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

Have you ever heard of a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy? 

n Yes n No/Don’t Know/Refused

76.3% 24.7%

Map 5 Regional Estimates of Awareness of Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

Have you ever heard of sigmoidoscopy and colonoscopy?

•	 Colonoscopy was the most commonly named test to

detect colon cancer in 2003 and 2005; however, in 

2003 and 2005, more Americans responded with no/

nothing when asked to name a test that detects colon 

cancer (48.0%[2003]; 40.5%[2005]) than responded 

with colonoscopy. 

•	 Awareness of sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy was

assessed in HINTS 2003. A majority (75.3%) of 

the respondents reported that they were aware of 

sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy.

•	 Figure 17 suggests that across the United States,

most people have heard of a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy; however, Map 5 seems to show that people 

HINTS 2003 CC-15a

Responded “Yes”

High: 96%

Low: 47%

 
57

in the South are less aware while those in the upper 

Midwest and Northeast are more aware of these 

procedures.

•	 Awareness of FOBT was assessed in HINTS 2003.

Figure 18 shows that just over half (56.9%) of the 

respondents reported that they were aware of FOBT.

•	 Map 6 suggests that, as compared with awareness

of a sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy, awareness of 

FOBT is relatively low across the United States, for 

example, in the South and Southwestern areas.

•	 In 2003, respondents without a personal history of

Figure 18 Awareness of Fecal Occult Blood Tests 

(FOBT) (2003)

Have you ever heard of a fecal occult or stool blood test? 

n Yes n No/Don’t Know/Refused

56.9% 43.1%

Map 6 Regional Estimates of Awareness of 

Fecal Occult Blood Test (2003) 

Have you ever heard of FOBT?

Figure 19 Knowledge of Age at Which to Begin 

Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

At what age are people supposed to start having sigmoidoscopy 

or colonoscopy exams? 

n Correct Answer (Age 50) n Incorrect Answer

32.2% 67.8%

Map 7 Regional Estimates of Knowledge of Age at 

Which to Begin Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

At what age are people supposed to start having sigmoidoscopy 

or colonoscopy exams? 

HINTS 2003 CC-24

Responded “50”

High: 38%

Low: 23%

colon cancer were asked about the recommended 

age at which to begin colon cancer screening with 

sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy. Figure 19 shows 

that less than one-third of Americans (32.2%) correctly identified age 50 as the age at which most 

people should begin receiving sigmoid- or colonoscopies; most incorrect respondents gave ages 

younger than 50 as an answer, and nearly 1 in 5 

(19.2%) responded with don’t know.

•	 Map 7 shows that across the United States, most

people do not know the recommended age to begin 

colorectal cancer screening, with relatively lower 

values in the South and Southeast. 

(% of respondents who 

correctly identified 50 as 

age to start sigmoidoscopy/

colonoscopy exams)

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.

HINTS 2003 CC-4a

Responded “Yes”

High: 96%

Low: 47%
58

Cervical Cancer 

•	 In 2005, women without a personal history of cervical cancer were asked about their knowledge of 

cervical cancer and Human Papillomavirus (HPV). 

Figure 20 shows that most women (61.1%) had 

never heard of HPV.

•	 Figure 20 provides evidence that the percentage of

women who have ever heard of HPV is low across 

the United States. Map 8 simultaneously suggests 

that reported awareness is relatively higher in the 

upper Midwest, the Northeast, and the lower Atlantic states.

Figure 20 Awareness of Human Papillomavirus 

(HPV) (2005)

Have you ever heard of HPV? HPV stands for Human 

Papillomavirus. 

n Yes n No/Don’t Know/Refused

38.4% 61.6%

Map 8 Regional Estimates of Awareness of 

Human Papillomavirus (HPV) (2005)

Have you ever heard of HPV?

HINTS 2005 CV-11

Responded “Yes”

High: 52%

Low: 29%

Figure 21 Knowledge that Human Papillomavirus 

(HPV) Causes Cervical Cancer (2005)

Do you think that HPV causes cervical cancer?

n Yes n No/Don’t Know/Refused

47% 53%

•	 Respondents who had heard of HPV (38.4% of

women) were asked whether they knew that HPV 

is a necessary cause of cervical cancer (Figure 21). 

Less than half (47.0%) correctly identified HPV as 

a cause of cervical cancer; nearly as many women 

(43.8%) said don’t know.

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.
59

Lung Cancer

•	 When asked to identify the leading cause of cancer

death, HINTS 2003 respondents tended to confuse 

incidence with mortality; nearly half (47.8%) of 

American men and women named the most incident 

gender-specific cancer (breast/prostate) as the type 

of cancer that caused the highest number of deaths 

annually. As Figure 22 shows, less than one-third 

(27.9%) correctly identified lung cancer as the leading cause of cancer death.

Figure 22 Cancer Mortality Knowledge (2003)

Which type of cancer do you think will cause the most deaths in 

(women/men) this year in the U.S.? Would you say: lung cancer, 

(breast/prostate) cancer, colon cancer, (cervical/testicular) 

cancer, or skin cancer?

n Lung Cancer n Other (incorrect)*

* Breast; prostate; colon; cervical; testicular; skin; don’t know

27.9% 72.1%

(Note: For female respondents, the HINTS 2003 question about cancer mortality asked about cancer deaths 

in women from lung, breast, colon, cervical, and skin 

cancers; for male respondents, the question asked 

about cancer deaths in men from lung, prostate, colon, 

testicular, and skin cancers).

•	 Map 9 indicates that, across the United States,

knowledge that lung cancer would cause the most 

deaths varies by region of the country, with greater 

knowledge seen in the West and upper Midwest.

Map 9 Regional Estimates of Cancer Mortality Knowledge (% of Respondents Correctly Identifying 

Lung Cancer) (2003)

Which type of cancer do you think will cause the most deaths this 

year in the United States?

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.

HINTS 2005 CK-15

Chose “Lung Cancer”

High: 35%

Low: 21%
60

Figure 23 Knowledge of Smoking and Lung 

Cancer Link (2003)

I’m going to read you some things that may affect a person’s 

chances of getting cancer. Do you think that smoking increases a 

person’s chances of getting cancer a lot, a little, or not at all or 

do you have no opinion?

n A lot n A little n Not at all/No opinion/Don’t Know/Refused

 6.3%

 9.3%

84.4%

•	 Awareness of the smoking-cancer link was assessed

in HINTS 2003 (see Figure 23). A majority of respondents (84.4%) reported that smoking increases a 

person’s chances of getting cancer a lot. 

•	 Though Figure 23 suggests that knowledge of the

link between smoking and cancer is high across the 

United States, Map 10 offers some evidence that 

this knowledge differs by region of the country. For 

example, high knowledge is seen in the West and 

upper Midwest, while there is relatively low knowledge 

in the Mid-Atlantic region and Southern states.

Drawing on the Health 

Information National Trends 

Survey, we can examine the 

relationship between publicity 

and knowledge gaps.

—K. “Vish” Viswanath, PhD 

School of Public Health, 

Harvard University

‘‘

‘‘

Map 10 Regional Estimates of Knowledge of 

Smoking-Cancer Link (2003)

Does smoking increase chances of cancer?

HINTS 2003 CK-13a

Responded “A Lot”

High: 96%

Low: 79%

(% of respondents who 

reported smoking increases 

cancer risk “A Lot”)

Note: State Level Estimates are Unstable.
61

Table 14 General Cancer Prevention Knowledge, by Sociodemographics (HINTS 2003)

General Prevention Knowledge

Can you think of anything people can do to reduce their chances of getting cancer?

Quit Smoking Eat Better/Better Nutrition No/Nothing Other

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total 60.0 (58.5, 61.4) 52.1 (50.4, 53.8) 16.0 (14.5, 17.6) 60.8 (59.0, 62.5)

 Gender 

Male 61.7 (59.3, 64.1) 48.3 (46.0, 50.7) 15.7 (13.6, 18.2) 57.2 (54.2, 60.2)

Female 58.3 (56.4, 60.2) 55.6 (53.5, 57.8) 16.2 (14.6, 17.9) 64.1 (62.2, 66.0)

 Age Group 

18-34 60.6 (57.1, 64.0) 40.4 (36.9, 44.1) 19.2 (16.4, 22.3) 58.5 (55.1, 61.9)

35-49 62.4 (59.3, 65.3) 59.5 (56.7, 62.1) 13.0 (10.7, 15.8) 64.5 (61.2, 67.6)

50-64 62.7 (59.2, 66.1) 62.7 (59.6, 65.7) 11.0 (9.0, 13.4) 64.7 (61.4, 67.9)

65-79 52.2 (47.5, 56.8) 48.9 (45.2, 52.7) 19.8 (16.4, 23.7) 54.2 (50.2, 58.2)

80+ 44.2 (37.8, 50.8) 34.5 (28.4, 41.0) 31.5 (24.5, 39.5) 47.5 (40.5, 54.6)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, Non-Hispanic 63.3 (61.5, 65.0) 57.6 (55.7, 59.5) 13.8 (12.4, 15.5) 63.5 (61.4, 65.6)

Black, Non-Hispanic 54.4 (49.6, 59.0) 46.5 (41.9, 51.2) 18.4 (15.2, 22.2) 51.8 (47.3, 56.3)

Hispanic 49.6 (44.7, 54.6) 28.0 (24.6, 31.7) 25.5 (21.3, 30.2) 55.0 (50.0, 59.9)

Non-Hispanic Other 53.6 (46.8, 60.3) 49.5 (42.1, 57.0) 14.2 (9.6, 20.5) 62.1 (55.2, 68.6)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 54.7 (51.5, 57.9) 36.6 (33.9, 39.4) 24.5 (21.9, 27.4) 50.7 (47.3, 54.2)

$25,000 to < $50,000 55.9 (53.5, 58.2) 51.4 (48.3, 54.6) 16.8 (14.3, 19.6) 60.2 (56.5, 63.9)

$50,000 to < $75,000 67.2 (63.0, 71.1) 62.3 (58.0, 66.4) 9.2 (7.2, 11.7) 67.8 (64.4, 71.0)

$75,000 or More 70.7 (67.7, 73.7) 67.4 (64.0, 70.6) 6.9 (5.0, 9.3) 73.6 (70.6, 76.4)

 Education 

Less than High School 50.9 (46.4, 55.5) 30.8 (26.3, 35.6) 29.9 (26.0, 34.1) 40.9 (36.5, 45.6)

High School Graduate 57.2 (54.6, 59.9) 46.1 (42.9, 49.4) 18.8 (16.3, 21.5) 55.1 (51.1, 59.0)

Some College 60.2 (57.2, 63.1) 58.3 (54.7, 61.8) 12.5 (10.3, 15.0) 66.3 (63.2, 69.2)

College Graduate or Beyond 70.1 (68.2, 71.9) 69.6 (66.7, 72.5) 5.9 (4.6, 7.5) 77.2 (74.6, 79.7)
62

Table 15 Prevention Knowledge Among Smokers (HINTS 2003)

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals 

Prevention Knowledge Among Smokers

Respondents who have smoked at least 100 cigarettes in life and specified whether they smoke currently.

Exercise can undo most of the effects of smoking. Vitamins can undo most of the effects of smoking.

Agree, No Opinion, Disagree Agree, No Opinion, Disagree

or Don’t Know or Don’t Know

% (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI) % (95% CI)

 Total 49.7 (47.4, 52.0) 50.3 (48.0, 52.6) 35.1 (32.8, 37.5) 64.9 (62.5, 67.2)

 Gender 

Male 54.0 (50.8, 57.2) 46.0 (42.8, 49.2) 38.6 (35.2, 42.2) 61.4 (57.8, 64.8)

Female 44.4 (41.0, 47.9) 55.6 (52.1, 59.0) 30.8 (27.6, 34.2) 69.2 (65.8, 72.4)

 Age Group 

18-34 52.3 (47.0, 57.6) 47.7 (42.4, 53.0) 37.0 (32.5, 41.7) 63.0 (58.3, 67.5)

35-49 52.4 (48.0, 56.8) 47.6 (43.2, 52.0) 35.2 (30.9, 39.7) 64.8 (60.3, 69.1)

50-64 44.4 (41.1, 47.8) 55.6 (52.2, 58.9) 31.0 (27.5, 34.7) 69.0 (65.3, 72.5)

65-79 47.5 (40.8, 54.3) 52.5 (45.7, 59.2) 37.2 (31.6, 43.1) 62.8 (56.9, 68.4)

80+ 55.3 (46.2, 64.0) 44.7 (36.0, 53.8) 44.7 (35.7, 54.1) 55.3 (45.9, 64.3)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 45.9 (42.9, 49.0) 54.1 (51.0, 57.1) 30.5 (27.8, 33.4) 69.5 (66.6, 72.2)

Black, non-Hispanic 62.9 (56.4, 68.9) 37.1 (31.1, 43.6) 50.1 (41.5, 58.7) 49.9 (41.3, 58.5)

Hispanic 64.5 (57.2, 71.1) 35.5 (28.9, 42.8) 50.6 (43.7, 57.4) 49.4 (42.6, 56.3)

Non-Hispanic Other 51.4 (42.6, 60.0) 48.6 (40.0, 57.4) 41.2 (32.3, 50.7) 58.8 (49.3, 67.7)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 58.3 (54.8, 61.7) 41.7 (38.3, 45.2) 46.2 (41.4, 51.1) 53.8 (48.9, 58.6)

$25,000 to < $50,000 47.1 (42.3, 52.0) 52.9 (48.0, 57.7) 33.0 (28.3, 38.0) 67.0 (62.0, 71.7)

$50,000 to < $75,000 45.6 (39.8, 51.6) 54.4 (48.4, 60.2) 27.6 (22.6, 33.2) 72.4 (66.8, 77.4)

$75,000 or more 40.0 (35.0, 45.3) 60.0 (54.7, 65.0) 26.0 (22.1, 30.4) 74.0 (69.6, 77.9)

 Education 

Less than High School 60.5 (54.2, 66.5) 39.5 (33.5, 45.8) 48.7 (42.6, 54.8) 51.3 (45.2, 57.4)

High School Graduate 49.4 (45.1, 53.7) 50.6 (46.3, 54.9) 35.4 (32.0, 39.0) 64.6 (61.0, 68.0)

Some College 48.2 (43.7, 52.7) 51.8 (47.3, 56.3) 32.1 (27.9, 36.6) 67.9 (63.4, 72.1)

College Graduate or Beyond 39.2 (34.7, 43.9) 60.8 (56.1, 65.3) 23.3 (19.7, 27.4) 76.7 (72.6, 80.3)
63

Table 16 Mammography Knowledge, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Mammography Knowledge

Female respondents who have never had breast cancer and have had or thought about having a mammogram.

At what age are women supposed to start In general, once women start having mammograms, 

having mammograms? about how often should they have them?

Correct Answer (Age 40) Incorrect Answer* Correct Answer (1 to < 2 years) Incorrect Answer** 

 Total 42.9 (40.9, 44.9) 57.1 (55.1, 59.1) 73.1 (71.0, 75.2) 26.9 (24.8, 29.0)

 Gender 

Male NA NA NA NA

Female 42.9 (40.9, 44.9) 57.1 (55.1, 59.1) 73.1 (71.0, 75.2) 26.9 (24.8, 29.0)

 Age Group 

18-34 29.9 (26.6, 33.4) 70.1 (66.6, 73.4) 72.6 (68.1, 76.6) 27.4 (23.4, 31.9)

35-49 56.8 (53.2, 60.4) 43.2 (39.6, 46.8) 73.6 (70.4, 76.5) 26.4 (23.5, 29.6)

50-64 47.8 (43.8, 51.8) 52.2 (48.2, 56.2) 74.8 (70.7, 78.6) 25.2 (21.4, 29.3)

65-79 37.0 (32.3, 42.0) 63.0 (58.0, 67.7) 73.1 (68.0, 77.7) 26.9 (22.3, 32.0)

80+ 28.2 (19.9, 38.2) 71.8 (61.8, 80.1) 64.6 (55.7, 72.6) 35.4 (27.4, 44.3)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 47.6 (45.4, 49.8) 52.4 (50.2, 54.6) 75.8 (73.5, 77.9) 24.2 (22.1, 26.5)

Black, non-Hispanic 33.8 (28.5, 39.4) 66.2 (60.6, 71.5) 67.5 (61.5, 73.1) 32.5 (26.9, 38.5)

Hispanic 29.2 (24.0, 35.1) 70.8 (64.9, 76.0) 65.0 (59.6, 70.0) 35.0 (30.0, 40.4)

Non-Hispanic Other 29.4 (20.4, 40.3) 70.6 (59.7, 79.6) 68.4 (57.6, 77.5) 31.6 (22.5, 42.4)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 33.6 (30.1, 37.3) 66.4 (62.7, 69.9) 69.3 (65.0, 73.4) 30.7 (26.6, 35.0)

$25,000 to < $50,000 41.7 (37.7, 45.7) 58.3 (54.3, 62.3) 75.3 (71.4, 78.8) 24.7 (21.2, 28.6)

$50,000 to < $75,000 50.6 (45.1, 56.2) 49.4 (43.8, 54.9) 75.1 (69.0, 80.4) 24.9 (19.6, 31.0)

$75,000 or more 57.3 (53.1, 61.4) 42.7 (38.6, 46.9) 78.2 (74.7, 81.3) 21.8 (18.7, 25.3)

 Education 

Less than High School 29.8 (24.6, 35.6) 70.2 (64.4, 75.4) 67.1 (60.7, 73.0) 32.9 (27.0, 39.3)

High School Graduate 40.7 (37.7, 43.7) 59.3 (56.3, 62.3) 72.3 (68.2, 76.1) 27.7 (23.9, 31.8)

Some College 45.2 (41.1, 49.3) 54.8 (50.7, 58.9) 77.1 (73.8, 80.2) 22.9 (19.8, 26.2)

College Graduate or Beyond 52.2 (49.0, 55.4) 47.8 (44.6, 51.0) 74.0 (70.5, 77.3) 26.0 (22.7, 29.5)

*Includes ages other than 40, when a health care provider says, refused, not ascertained or didn’t know.

**Includes intervals other than every 1 to <2 years, when a health care provider says, other responses, refused, not ascertained or 

didn’t know.
64

Table 17 Colon Cancer Prevention Knowledge, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Colon Cancer Prevention Knowledge 

In 2003, respondents who have had colon cancer were excluded. 

Can you think of any tests that detect colon cancer? HINTS 2003 

Colonoscopy/ No/Don’t Know/ Other 

Sigmoidoscopy/ FOBT Refused/Not Ascertained 

 Total 41.7 (40.2, 43.2) 51.2 (49.7, 52.6) 16.1 (15.3, 17.0) 

 Gender 

Male 32.1 (30.3, 34.0) 59.9 (58.0, 61.8) 16.1 (14.8, 17.5) 

Female 50.6 (48.6, 52.6) 43.1 (41.3, 44.9) 16.2 (14.9, 17.5) 

 Age Group 

18-34 25.2 (22.8, 27.8) 69.6 (66.7, 72.3) 10.3 (8.7, 12.2) 

35-49 41.5 (38.9, 44.1) 50.0 (47.1, 52.9) 18.3 (16.4, 20.4) 

50-64 59.1 (56.3, 61.9) 33.1 (30.3, 36.0) 21.0 (18.5, 23.7) 

65-79 54.3 (50.6, 57.9) 38.3 (34.7, 42.1) 17.5 (15.0, 20.3) 

80+ 36.8 (30.8, 43.2) 55.5 (48.4, 62.4) 14.0 (9.6, 20.0) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 50.0 (48.4, 51.7) 42.1 (40.4, 43.8) 18.5 (17.4, 19.7) 

Black, non-Hispanic 26.5 (22.1, 31.3) 66.8 (61.8, 71.4) 12.2 (9.6, 15.4) 

Hispanic 14.8 (11.9, 18.3) 80.4 (77.0, 83.4) 8.0 (6.1, 10.4) 

Non-Hispanic Other 29.0 (23.5, 35.2) 64.6 (58.9, 69.8) 12.1 (8.8, 16.5) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 27.7 (24.4, 31.2) 66.0 (62.9, 69.0) 10.9 (9.4, 12.6) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 38.8 (36.0, 41.7) 54.1 (51.1, 57.0) 16.2 (14.5, 18.1) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 52.5 (49.3, 55.7) 40.2 (36.7, 43.8) 18.2 (15.0, 21.8) 

$75,000 or more 59.1 (55.8, 62.3) 32.0 (29.0, 35.1) 22.7 (20.1, 25.5) 

 Education 

Less than High School 18.4 (15.0, 22.3) 75.9 (72.2, 79.2) 8.7 (6.4, 11.8) 

High School Graduate 35.4 (33.0, 37.8) 57.3 (54.8, 59.9) 14.7 (12.8, 16.9) 

Some College 48.4 (45.4, 51.4) 44.6 (41.8, 47.4) 17.0 (14.9, 19.2) 

College Graduate or Beyond 60.9 (58.5, 63.4) 30.5 (28.4, 32.8) 23.2 (21.1, 25.4) 
65

In 2005, all respondents are included. 

Can you think of any tests to detect colon cancer? HINTS 2005

Colonoscopy/ No/Don’t Know/ Other

Sigmoidoscopy/ FOBT Refused/Not Ascertained

48.9 (47.6, 50.3) 45.0 (43.4, 46.6) 17.9 (16.6, 19.3)

39.9 (37.5, 42.4) 51.9 (48.8, 54.9) 18.5 (16.4, 20.9)

57.3 (55.3, 59.2) 38.6 (36.7, 40.5) 17.3 (15.8, 18.9)

31.0 (27.7, 34.6) 63.0 (59.0, 66.9) 13.3 (10.8, 16.3)

49.8 (47.1, 52.5) 43.8 (40.5, 47.3) 19.1 (16.1, 22.5)

65.9 (62.7, 69.0) 27.1 (24.3, 30.2) 23.9 (20.5, 27.7)

61.9 (58.1, 65.5) 33.1 (29.2, 37.4) 18.0 (15.0, 21.5)

43.2 (35.4, 51.3) 53.2 (45.7, 60.6) 9.0 (6.2, 12.9)

59.3 (57.2, 61.5) 34.6 (32.3, 36.9) 20.8 (19.1, 22.6)

35.3 (29.9, 41.0) 58.6 (51.8, 65.1) 11.9 (8.1, 17.0)

20.4 (17.0, 24.2) 74.2 (69.6, 78.3) 10.4 (7.7, 13.9)

32.9 (26.2, 40.3) 58.7 (49.8, 67.1) 17.0 (11.9, 23.6)

32.2 (29.1, 35.5) 60.8 (57.2, 64.4) 12.8 (10.3, 15.8)

51.0 (47.5, 54.5) 42.6 (39.3, 46.0) 18.4 (15.8, 21.3)

59.5 (54.7, 64.2) 35.1 (30.5, 40.1) 20.2 (16.5, 24.6)

58.8 (54.1, 63.4) 33.5 (29.0, 38.4) 23.5 (20.4, 26.8)

22.5 (18.8, 26.6) 71.7 (66.9, 76.1) 8.2 (6.0, 11.2)

41.7 (38.9, 44.5) 53.1 (49.9, 56.2) 12.8 (10.6, 15.3)

55.8 (53.1, 58.5) 37.2 (33.9, 40.7) 20.5 (17.7, 23.6)

69.1 (66.2, 71.8) 24.4 (21.9, 27.0) 28.6 (26.1, 31.4)
66

Table 18 Colon Cancer Screening Knowledge, by Sociodemographics (HINTS 2003) 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Colon Cancer Screening Knowledge

Respondents who never had colon cancer 

Have you ever heard of a sigmoidoscopy Have you ever heard of a fecal occult 

or colonoscopy? or stool blood test? 

 Yes No/Don’t Know/Refused Yes No/Don’t Know/Refused 

 Total 75.3 (74.0, 76.6) 24.7 (23.4, 26.0) 56.9 (55.3, 58.4) 43.1 (41.6, 44.7) 

 Gender 

Male 68.4 (66.2, 70.6) 31.6 (29.4, 33.8) 49.1 (46.9, 51.2) 50.9 (48.8, 53.1) 

Female 81.7 (80.3, 83.0) 18.3 (17.0, 19.7) 64.2 (62.3, 66.0) 35.8 (34.0, 37.7) 

 Age Group 

18-34 60.1 (57.5, 62.8) 39.9 (37.2, 42.5) 34.5 (31.3, 37.8) 65.5 (62.2, 68.7) 

35-49 79.3 (76.7, 81.8) 20.7 (18.2, 23.3) 56.4 (54.0, 58.8) 43.6 (41.2, 46.0) 

50-64 86.0 (84.0, 87.8) 14.0 (12.2, 16.0) 77.7 (74.7, 80.4) 22.3 (19.6, 25.3) 

65-79 84.5 (81.1, 87.3) 15.5 (12.7, 18.9) 75.8 (72.6, 78.7) 24.2 (21.3, 27.4) 

80+ 76.0 (70.4, 80.8) 24.0 (19.2, 29.6) 65.7 (59.7, 71.2) 34.3 (28.8, 40.3) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 85.4 (83.8, 86.9) 14.6 (13.1, 16.2) 63.4 (61.7, 65.1) 36.6 (34.9, 38.3) 

Black, non-Hispanic 56.3 (51.2, 61.2) 43.7 (38.8, 48.8) 53.1 (48.2, 58.0) 46.9 (42.0, 51.8) 

Hispanic 41.1 (36.5, 46.0) 58.9 (54.0, 63.5) 30.0 (25.6, 34.9) 70.0 (65.1, 74.4) 

Non-Hispanic Other 61.0 (54.2, 67.4) 39.0 (32.6, 45.8) 45.4 (39.5, 51.5) 54.6 (48.5, 60.5) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 58.3 (54.4, 62.2) 41.7 (37.8, 45.6) 49.7 (46.0, 53.4) 50.3 (46.6, 54.0) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 76.6 (73.5, 79.4) 23.4 (20.6, 26.5) 56.4 (53.3, 59.4) 43.6 (40.6, 46.7) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 87.2 (84.1, 89.8) 12.8 (10.2, 15.9) 64.1 (59.4, 68.6) 35.9 (31.4, 40.6) 

$75,000 or more 91.0 (88.6, 92.9) 9.0 (7.1, 11.4) 64.5 (61.2, 67.7) 35.5 (32.3, 38.8) 

 Education 

Less than High School 49.4 (45.4, 53.5) 50.6 (46.5, 54.6) 41.6 (37.2, 46.1) 58.4 (53.9, 62.8) 

High School Graduate 74.0 (71.3, 76.4) 26.0 (23.6, 28.7) 57.8 (55.5, 60.0) 42.2 (40.0, 44.5) 

Some College 79.3 (76.2, 82.1) 20.7 (17.9, 23.8) 59.1 (56.2, 61.8) 40.9 (38.2, 43.8) 

College Graduate or Beyond 92.5 (91.0, 93.7) 7.5 (6.3, 9.0) 66.3 (64.0, 68.5) 33.7 (31.5, 36.0) 
67

At what age are people supposed to start

having sigmoidoscopy or colonoscopy exams?

Correct Answer (Age 50) Incorrect Answer

32.2 (30.6, 33.8) 67.8 (66.2, 69.4)

31.6 (28.8, 34.5) 68.4 (65.5, 71.2)

32.6 (30.7, 34.6) 67.4 (65.4, 69.3)

17.8 (15.0, 21.1) 82.2 (78.9, 85.0)

31.8 (29.5, 34.3) 68.2 (65.7, 70.5)

51.1 (47.6, 54.7) 48.9 (45.3, 52.4)

28.5 (24.4, 33.0) 71.5 (67.0, 75.6)

18.1 (13.2, 24.3) 81.9 (75.7, 86.8)

35.4 (33.6, 37.1) 64.6 (62.9, 66.4)

21.0 (16.6, 26.2) 79.0 (73.8, 83.4)

18.0 (13.2, 24.1) 82.0 (75.9, 86.8)

21.4 (14.8, 29.8) 78.6 (70.2, 85.2)

22.6 (19.6, 26.0) 77.4 (74.0, 80.4)

27.5 (25.3, 29.9) 72.5 (70.1, 74.7)

36.7 (32.3, 41.2) 63.3 (58.8, 67.7)

41.3 (37.8, 44.8) 58.7 (55.2, 62.2)

15.6 (12.1, 19.9) 84.4 (80.1, 87.9)

32.0 (29.2, 34.9) 68.0 (65.1, 70.8)

33.8 (30.1, 37.7) 66.2 (62.3, 69.9)

38.1 (35.6, 40.6) 61.9 (59.4, 64.4)
68

Table 19 Cervical Cancer Knowledge, by Sociodemographics (HINTS 2003) 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Cervical Cancer Knowledge 

 Female respondents who have not had cervical cancer

Have you ever heard of HPV? Do you think that HPV causes cervical cancer? *

HPV stands for Human Papillomavirus.

 Yes No/Don’t Know/Refused Yes No/Don’t Know/Refused

 Total 38.4 (36.7, 40.0) 61.6 (60.0, 63.3) 47.0 (43.5, 50.6) 53.0 (49.4, 56.5)

 Gender 

Male NA NA NA NA 

Female 38.4 (36.7, 40.0) 61.6 (60.0, 63.3) 47.0 (43.5, 50.6) 53.0 (49.4, 56.5)

 Age Group 

18-34 44.3 (40.6, 48.0) 55.7 (52.0, 59.4) 48.7 (40.8, 56.6) 51.3 (43.4, 59.2) 

35-49 44.9 (40.9, 48.9) 55.1 (51.1, 59.1) 48.6 (43.0, 54.3) 51.4 (45.7, 57.0) 

50-64 36.7 (33.0, 40.6) 63.3 (59.4, 67.0) 47.5 (40.3, 54.7) 52.5 (45.3, 59.7)

65-79 20.8 (17.2, 25.0) 79.2 (75.0, 82.8) 37.2 (27.1, 48.5) 62.8 (51.5, 72.9) 

80+ 16.5 (11.6, 22.8) 83.5 (77.2, 88.4) 23.8 (11.2, 43.5) 76.2 (56.5, 88.8)

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 42.0 (40.1, 44.0) 58.0 (56.0, 59.9) 44.0 (39.8, 48.3) 56.0 (51.7, 60.2) 

Black, non-Hispanic 32.5 (26.4, 39.4) 67.5 (60.6, 73.6) 41.4 (28.1, 56.1) 58.6 (43.9, 71.9) 

Hispanic 27.5 (21.1, 35.0) 72.5 (65.0, 78.9) 63.4 (48.9, 75.7) 36.6 (24.3, 51.1) 

Non-Hispanic Other 34.9 (26.7, 44.1) 65.1 (55.9, 73.3) 66.5 (45.7, 82.4) 33.5 (17.6, 54.3)

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 25.4 (21.8, 29.4) 74.6 (70.6, 78.2) 48.0 (38.3, 57.8) 52.0 (42.2, 61.7) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 36.8 (32.6, 41.1) 63.2 (58.9, 67.4) 45.4 (38.2, 52.7) 54.6 (47.3, 61.8) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 44.3 (38.6, 50.1) 55.7 (49.9, 61.4) 50.2 (42.0, 58.3) 49.8 (41.7, 58.0) 

$75,000 or more 53.5 (48.6, 58.4) 46.5 (41.6, 51.4) 51.1 (44.9, 57.3) 48.9 (42.7, 55.1)

 Education 

Less than High School 15.5 (11.3, 21.1) 84.5 (78.9, 88.7) 46.5 (31.8, 61.8) 53.5 (38.2, 68.2) 

High School Graduate 26.0 (22.0, 30.3) 74.0 (69.7, 78.0) 36.2 (27.8, 45.7) 63.8 (54.3, 72.2) 

Some College 45.8 (41.8, 49.8) 54.2 (50.2, 58.2) 46.3 (40.5, 52.2) 53.7 (47.8, 59.5) 

College Graduate or Beyond 59.4 (55.8, 62.9) 40.6 (37.1, 44.2) 53.4 (47.7, 59.0) 46.6 (41.0, 52.3)

*Only respondents who had heard of HPV were asked whether or not they believed HPV causes cervical cancer.
69

More than 50 percent of female respondents had never heard of HPV. 

Among women who were aware of HPV, 53 percent were unaware that 

HPV causes cervical cancer.
70

Table 20 Lung Cancer Knowledge, by Sociodemographics 

Weighted Percentages and 95% Confidence Intervals

Lung Cancer Knowledge

 

How much do you think that smoking increases a person’s chances of getting cancer? 

A lot A little Not at all/ No Opinion/ 

Don’t Know/Refused 

 Total 84.4 (82.3, 86.4) 9.3 (8.0, 10.8) 6.3 (5.1, 7.6) 

 Gender 

Male 84.1 (80.9, 86.8) 9.3 (7.5, 11.4) 6.7 (4.8, 9.2) 

Female 84.8 (82.4, 86.9) 9.4 (7.7, 11.4) 5.9 (4.7, 7.2) 

 Age Group 

18-34 87.1 (83.2, 90.2) 9.0 (6.6, 12.1) 3.9 (2.7, 5.6) 

35-49 86.3 (83.1, 88.9) 8.8 (6.8, 11.4) 4.9 (3.6, 6.6) 

50-64 83.3 (80.1, 86.1) 9.6 (7.4, 12.5) 7.1 (4.9, 10.0) 

65-79 75.9 (69.1, 81.7) 10.9 (7.7, 15.2) 13.2 (8.5, 19.8) 

80+ 82.5 (70.8, 90.2) 7.6 (3.9, 14.5) 9.9 (4.0, 22.5) 

 Race/Ethnicity 

White, non-Hispanic 85.2 (82.7, 87.4) 8.9 (7.5, 10.4) 5.9 (4.5, 7.7) 

Black, non-Hispanic 82.4 (77.5, 86.4) 9.2 (5.5, 14.8) 8.5 (5.9, 12.0) 

Hispanic 82.8 (77.7, 86.9) 11.3 (7.7, 16.2) 6.0 (3.7, 9.5) 

Non-Hispanic Other 80.6 (69.2, 88.5) 14.6 (8.2, 24.8) 4.8 (2.3, 9.8) 

 Household Income 

Less than $25,000 79.9 (75.1, 83.9) 10.3 (7.5, 14.1) 9.8 (7.7, 12.4) 

$25,000 to < $50,000 82.9 (79.4, 85.9) 11.6 (9.3, 14.4) 5.5 (3.7, 8.2) 

$50,000 to < $75,000 86.5 (81.7, 90.2) 8.3 (6.1, 11.2) 5.2 (2.8, 9.2) 

$75,000 or more 91.7 (89.3, 93.6) 6.2 (4.5, 8.5) 2.0 (1.2, 3.4) 

 Education 

Less than High School 75.9 (68.7, 81.9) 11.7 (8.1, 16.6) 12.4 (8.4, 17.9) 

High School Graduate 81.1 (77.6, 84.2) 12.0 (9.4, 15.1) 6.9 (5.4, 8.9) 

Some College 86.7 (82.6, 89.9) 8.7 (6.4, 11.8) 4.6 (2.9, 7.3) 

College Graduate or Beyond 92.3 (90.2, 93.9) 5.3 (4.0, 7.1) 2.4 (1.5, 3.9) 
71

Which type of cancer do you think will cause 

the most deaths in (women/men) this year in the US?

Lung cancer Breast/Prostate/Colon/ Cervical/

Testicular/Skin Cancer, Don’t Know

27.9 (26.9, 29.0) 72.1 (71.0, 73.1)

38.3 (36.7, 39.9) 61.7 (60.1, 63.3)

18.4 (16.8, 20.0) 81.6 (80.0, 83.2)

30.4 (28.0, 33.0) 69.6 (67.0, 72.0)

28.5 (26.1, 31.0) 71.5 (69.0, 73.9)

26.9 (24.3, 29.8) 73.1 (70.2, 75.7)

24.9 (21.3, 28.9) 75.1 (71.1, 78.7)

16.9 (12.4, 22.7) 83.1 (77.3, 87.6)

28.3 (26.8, 29.8) 71.7 (70.2, 73.2)

20.9 (17.2, 25.2) 79.1 (74.8, 82.8)

33.2 (29.4, 37.2) 66.8 (62.8, 70.6)

28.9 (21.9, 37.3) 71.1 (62.7, 78.1)

28.4 (26.2, 30.8) 71.6 (69.2, 73.8)

26.8 (23.7, 30.1) 73.2 (69.9, 76.3)

27.1 (23.9, 30.6) 72.9 (69.4, 76.1)

32.0 (28.9, 35.2) 68.0 (64.8, 71.1)

32.1 (28.2, 36.3) 67.9 (63.7, 71.8)

26.0 (23.5, 28.7) 74.0 (71.3, 76.5)

26.0 (23.2, 29.1) 74.0 (70.9, 76.8)

30.7 (28.7, 32.7) 69.3 (67.3, 71.3)
72

The HINTS data collection program was created to 

monitor changes in the rapidly evolving field of health 

communication. HINTS provides a distinct set of 

interdisciplinary measures including cancer-relevant 

communication, information, knowledge, beliefs, attitudes, and behaviors. The survey provides a unique 

opportunity to examine the interrelationships across 

measures in each of these domains, and the biennial administration of HINTS permits the tracking 

of important trends over time. HINTS is intended to 

be an ongoing mechanism for gathering data on the 

nation’s progress in conveying cancer-related health 

information to the U.S. adult population. With the 

mounting prominence and importance of health communication, and rapid changes in communication technology, HINTS data will be useful to practitioners, 

researchers, and policy makers in many disciplines 

and practice settings, possibly including those outside 

of cancer.

Survey researchers are using the data to understand 

how adults use different communication channels to 

obtain health and cancer information for themselves 

and for others. Program planners are using the data to 

overcome barriers to health information usage across 

populations, and to obtain the necessary data to create 

more effective communication strategies. Finally, social scientists are using the data to refine their theories 

of health communication in the information age and 

to offer new and better recommendations for reducing 

the burden of cancer throughout the population. 

Future HINTS Cycles

Methodological Considerations

With careful attention to the methodological rigor and 

comparability of the HINTS surveillance items to other established national health surveys, HINTS has the 

potential to make a unique contribution to the U.S.’s 

emerging National Health Information Infrastructure

(USDHHS, 2001). To this end, continued efforts will 

be undertaken to protect the methodological integrity of repeated items across future administrations 

of the survey and routine psychometric analyses and 

documentation of the reliability and validity of items 

will be conducted (Nelson et al., 2004). Furthermore, 

evaluation and comparison of items in HINTS with 

other national surveys, including the Behavioral Risk 

Factors Surveillance System (BRFSS), and the National Health Interview Survey (NHIS) will be made 

(e.g., Nelson et al., 2003). 

Although RDD telephone surveys have long been 

used to collect national data from the general population, response rates from RDD surveys have become 

increasingly more difficult and more expensive to 

execute. Based on speculation in the survey research 

community that for certain types of research questions 

it may be possible to use aspects of new media to supplement or even replace traditional modes of data collection (Couper, 2000; Kraut, Olson, Banaji, Bruckman, Cohen, Couper, 2003; de Leeuw & de Heer, 

2002; Goyder, Warriner, & Miller, 2002; Nelson et al., 

2004; Williams, Rice, Rogers, 1988), the first wave of 

HINTS 2005 attempted to test the utility of a hybrid 

approach to data collection. Specifically, an embedded 

methodological experiment to assess the feasibility of 

Conclusions

Implications for Planning, Research, and Practice
73

using the traditional RDD telephone sampling frame 

during the screening portion of a national survey was 

followed by an extended interview provided through 

the Internet. Although this approach may overcome 

some of the sampling bias problems associated with 

Internet-only surveys (Krosnick & Chang, 2001), 

results of the embedded experiment were disappointing and the hybrid approach was abandoned in the 

second wave of the HINTS 2005 data collection cycle. 

As previously mentioned, continuing efforts are being 

made to utilize HINTS to evaluate the effectiveness of 

alternative methodological approaches to data collection and to assess the costs and benefits of such 

approaches in terms of analytical power due to coverage, response rate, or sampling error (Dillman, 2000; 

Dillman, Phelps, Tortora, Swift, Kohrell, & Berck, 

2002; Nelson et al., 2004).

Content

To serve its intended surveillance function and permit 

the tracking of trends, half of the items in the HINTS 

instrument will necessarily remain unchanged over 

time. The remaining survey content will be available for collection of information on special topics as 

needed. Future versions of HINTS may also address 

focused research on specific cancer communication 

topics (Nelson et al., 2004). To facilitate the relevance 

and timeliness of topics to be addressed in HINTS, an 

external Consultation Committee of experts in communication, health research, and survey methodology has been formed. This committee will guide the 

development and implementation of future iterations 

of HINTS. The content of future iterations of HINTS 

may span the continuum of cancer care including 

traditional communication research topics, as well as 

emerging issues in prevention, early detection, treatment, survivorship, and end-of-life. Future cycles of 

HINTS may examine various communication channels including the influence of traditional mass media, 

provider-patient interactions, social networks, and 

dynamic new digital media (Nelson et al., 2004).
74

References

Couper, M. P. (2000). Web surveys: A review of issues and approaches. Public Opinion Quarterly, 64, 464-494.

Croyle, R.T., and Lerman, C. (1999). Risk communication in genetic testing for

Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Monographs, 25, 59-66.

de Leeuw, E., & de Heer, W. (2002). Trends in household survey nonresponse: a longitudinal and 

international comparison. In D. A. D. R.M. Groves, J.L. Eltinge, R.J.A. Little (Ed.), Survey Nonresponse, 121-134. New York: John Wiley.

Dillman, D.A. (2000). Mail and Internet surveys: The Tailored Design Method. (2nd ed.). New 

York: John Wiley Co.

Dillman, D.A., Phelps, G., Tortora, R., Swift, K., Kohrell, J., & Berck, J. (2002). Response Rate 

and Measurement Differences in Mixed-Mode Surveys Using Mail, Telephone, Interactive Voice 

Response and the Internet. Paper presented at JPSM’s two-day short course: Words, Numbers, 

Symbols, and Graphics: Understanding the Effects of Visual languages in Mail, Internet, and 

Mixed-Mode Surveys, Arlington, VA.

Fischhoff, B., Bostrom, A., and Quadrel, M.J. (1993). Risk perception and communication. Annual 

Review of Public Health, 14, 183-203.

Glanz, K., Lewis, F.M., and Rimer, B.K. (1997). Health behavior and health education. San Francisco: John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

Goyder, J., Warriner, K., & Miller, S. (2002). Evaluating socio-economic status (SES) bias in 

survey nonresponse. Journal of Official Statistics, 18, 1-12.

Groves R. Survey Errors and Survey Costs. New York: Wiley, 1989.

Hiatt, R. A., & Rimer, B. K. (1999). A new strategy for cancer control research. Cancer Epidemiology Biomarkers and Prevention, 8, 957-964.

Kraut, R., Olson, J., Banaji, M., Bruckman, A., Cohen, J., & Couper, M. (2003). Psychological 

research online: Opportunities and Challenges. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association. Accessed on November 16, 2005 at http://www.apa.org/science/bsaweb-agcri.html. 

Krosnick, J. A. & Chang, L. (2003). A comparison of the random digit dialing telephone survey 

methodology with Internet survey methodology as implemented by Knowledge Networks and 

Harris Interactive. Columbus, OH: Ohio State University, 2001. Accessed on November 16, 2005 

at http://www.psy.ohio-state.edu/social/krosnick.htm.

Nelson, D.E., Kreps, G.L., Hesse, B.W., Croyle, R.T., Willis, G., Arora, N.K., Rimer, B.K., 
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Viswanath, K.V., Weinstein, N., & Alden, S. (2004). The Health Information National Trends 

Survey (HINTS): development, design, and dissemination. Journal of Health Communication, 9, 

443-460. 

Nelson, D.E., Powell-Griner, E., Town, M., Kovar, M.G. (2003). A comparison of national estimates from the National Health Interview Survey and the Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance 

System. American Journal of Public Health, 93, 1335-41. 

Rogers, E.M. (1995). Lessons for guidelines from the diffusion of innovations. The Joint Commission Journal on Quality Improvement, 21(7), 324-328.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2001). Information for Health: A Strategy for 

Building the National Health Information Infrastructure. Washington, D.C.: U.S. Government 

Printing Office.

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (2006). Accelerating Successes Against Cancer 

(Recommendations from the NCI-Designated Cancer Center Directors). Washington, D.C.: U.S. 

Government Printing Office.

van der Molen B. Relating information needs to the cancer experience: 1. Information as a key 

coping strategy. Eur J Cancer Care (Engl). 1999 Dec;8(4):238-44.

Viswanath K. Science and society: the communications revolution and cancer control.

Nat Rev Cancer. 2005 Oct;5(10):828-35.

Viswanath K., and Finnegan J.R. (1996). The knowledge gap hypothesis: 25 years later. In B. Burleson (Ed.) Communication Yearbook 19, 187-227. Thousand Oaks, Calif.: Sage Publications.

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76

Tables

 Table 1 Sociodemographic Characteristics

 Table 2 Typical Exposure to TV, Radio, and Newspaper, by Sociodemographics 

 Table 3 Internet Health Information Seeking and Communication, by Sociodemographics 

 Table 4 Cancer Information Seeking, by Sociodemographics

 Table 5 Average Time Since Last Search for Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics

 Table 6 Sources of Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics

 Table 7 Preferred Source for Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics

 Table 8 Surrogate Sources of Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics

 Table 9 Cancer Information Seeking and Usefulness of Information on the Internet, 

 by Sociodemographics

 Table 10 Awareness of National Cancer Organizations, by Sociodemographics

 Table 11 Trust in Sources of Information, by Sociodemographics 

 Table 12 Confidence in Obtaining Cancer Information, by Sociodemographics

 Table 13 Barriers to Information Seeking, by Sociodemographics

 Table 14 General Cancer Prevention Knowledge, by Sociodemographics 

 Table 15 Prevention Knowledge Among American Smokers, by Sociodemographics

 Table 16 Mammography Knowledge, by Sociodemographics 

 Table 17 Colon Cancer Prevention Knowledge, by Sociodemographics

 Table 18 Colon Cancer Screening Knowledge, by Sociodemographics 

 Table 19 Cervical Cancer Knowledge, by Sociodemographics

 Table 20 Lung Cancer Knowledge, by Sociodemographics 
77

Figures

 Figure 1 Exposure to Television, Radio, and Newspaper (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 2 Using the Internet for Health (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 3 Cancer Information Seeking (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 4 Actual Sources of Cancer Information (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 5 Preferred Source for Cancer Information (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 6 Surrogate Sources of Cancer Information (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 7 Awareness of National Cancer Organizations (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 8 Trust in Sources of Information (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 9 Experiences with Information Seeking (2003 and 2005)

 Figure 10 Prevention Knowledge Among the American Public (2003)

 Figure 11 Prevention Knowledge Among American Smokers: Exercise (2003)

 Figure 12 Prevention Knowledge Among American Smokers: Vitamin Use (2003) 

 Figure 13 Knowledge of Age at Which to Begin Mammography (2003)

 Figure 14 Knowledge of Recommended Mammography Frequency (2003)

 Figure 15 Knowledge of Tests to Detect Colon Cancer (2003)

 Figure 16 Knowledge of Tests to Detect Colon Cancer (2005)

 Figure 17 Awareness of Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

 Figure 18 Awareness of Fecal Occult Blood Tests (FOBT) (2003)

 Figure 19 Knowledge of Age at Which to Begin Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

 Figure 20 Awareness of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) (2005)

 Figure 21 Knowledge that Human Papillomavirus (HPV) Causes Cervical Cancer (2005)

 Figure 22 Cancer Mortality Knowledge (2003)

 Figure 23 Knowledge of Smoking and Lung Cancer Link (2003)
78

Maps 

 Map 1 Regional Estimates of Internet Use for Health Information (2003)

 Map 2 Regional Estimates of Internet Use for Health Information (2005)

 Map 3 Knowledge of Age at Which to Begin Mammogram (2003)

 Map 4 Knowledge of Mammography Screening Frequency (2003)

 Map 5 Regional Estimates of Awareness of Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

 Map 6 Regional Estimates of Awareness of Fecal Occult Blood Test (FOBT) (2003)

 Map 7 Regional Estimates of Knowledge of Age at Which to Begin Sigmoidoscopy/Colonoscopy (2003)

 Map 8 Regional Estimates of Awareness of Human Papillomavirus (HPV) (2005)

 Map 9 Regional Estimates of Cancer Mortality Knowledge 

(% of Respondents Correctly Identifying Lung Cancer) (2003)

 Map10 Regional Estimates of Knowledge of Smoking-Cancer Link (2003)
79
80
CANCER INFORMATION 

AND RESOURCES

Patient-oriented Information

NCI’s Cancer Information Service (CIS)

http://cis.nci.nih.gov/ with links to NCI-published fact sheets and other resources

Phone: 1-800-4-CANCER (1-800-422-6237) 

TDD: 1-800-332-8615

Other NCI or DHHS Sources of Cancer Information 

National Cancer Institute: www.cancer.gov

Office of Education and Special Initiatives (OESI): www.cancer.gov/aboutnci/oesi

Office of Communications: www.cancer.gov/aboutnci/office-of-communications/page3 

American Cancer Society (ACS)

www.cancer.org/docroot/home/index.asp 

Federally-sponsored program planning resources

Cancer Control P.L.A.N.E.T.

http://cancercontrolplanet.cancer.gov/

Research-tested Intervention Programs (RTIPs) 

http://rtips.cancer.gov/rtips/index.do 

Guide to Community Preventive Services

www.thecommunityguide.org/ 

Research Tools and Resources

Behavioral Risk Factor Surveillance System (BRFSS)

www.cdc.gov/brfss/ 

National Health Interview Survey (NHIS)

www.cdc.gov/nchs/nhis.htm

Current Population Survey (CPS)

www.census.gov/cps/ 

Surveillance, Epidemiology, and End Results (SEER)

http://seer.cancer.gov/

Pew Internet and American Life Project

http://www.pewinternet.org/data.asp
hints.cancer.gov

NIH Publication No. 07-6214

Printed August 2007