Decreased public pursuit of cancer-related information during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States Journal Article
| Authors: | Adelhoefer, S.; Berning, P.; Solomon, S. B.; Maybody, M.; Whelton, S. P.; Blaha, M. J.; Dzaye, O. |
| Article Title: | Decreased public pursuit of cancer-related information during the COVID-19 pandemic in the United States |
| Abstract: | Background: In response to the prioritization of healthcare resources towards the COVID-19 pandemic, routine cancer screening and diagnostic have been disrupted, potentially explaining the apparent COVID-era decline in cancer cases and mortality. In this study, we identified temporal trends in public interest in cancer-related health information using the nowcasting tool Google Trends. Methods: We used Google Trends to query search terms related to cancer types for short-term (September 2019–September 2020) and long-term (September 2016–September 2020) trends in the US. We compared average relative search volumes (RSV) for specified time ranges to detect recent and seasonal variation. Results: General search interest declined for all cancer types beginning in March 2020, with changes in search interest for “Breast cancer,” “Colorectal cancer,” and “Melanoma” of − 30.6%, − 28.2%, and − 26.7%, respectively, and compared with the mean RSV of the two previous months. In the same time range, search interest for “Telemedicine” has increased by + 907.1% and has reached a 4-year peak with a sustained increased level of search interest. Absolute cancer mortality has declined and is presently at a 4-year low; however, search interest in cancer has been recuperating since July 2020. Conclusion: We observed a marked decline in searches for cancer-related health information that mirrors the reduction in new cancer diagnoses and cancer mortality during the COVID-19 pandemic. Health professions need to be prepared for the coming demand for cancer-related healthcare, foreshadowed by recovering interest in cancer-related information on Google Trends. © 2021, The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature Switzerland AG. |
| Keywords: | liver cell carcinoma; united states; colorectal cancer; melanoma; breast cancer; patient education; cancer mortality; medical information; uterine cervix cancer; health promotion; thyroid cancer; meningioma; trend study; seasonal variation; telemedicine; pandemic; information seeking; human; priority journal; article; malignant neoplasm; coronavirus disease 2019; cancer awareness; google trends; infodemiology |
| Journal Title: | Cancer Causes & Control |
| Volume: | 32 |
| Issue: | 6 |
| ISSN: | 0957-5243 |
| Publisher: | Springer |
| Date Published: | 2021-06-01 |
| Start Page: | 577 |
| End Page: | 585 |
| Language: | English |
| DOI: | 10.1007/s10552-021-01409-1 |
| PUBMED: | 33683506 |
| PROVIDER: | scopus |
| PMCID: | PMC7938033 |
| DOI/URL: | |
| Notes: | Article -- Export Date: 1 June 2021 -- Source: Scopus |
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