What Do People Affected by Cancer Talk about Online? Text analysis of online cancer community usage in Bosnia and Herzegovina

摘要

Studies report that health information searching is among the top three activities on the Internet. Internet resources are a good alternative for initial information and health managing support, due to their accessibility and availability. However, little is known about the type of support and information that people affected by cancer seek for and exchange via the Internet, in online communities, especially in non-English speaking environments. To bring light to this important matter, we conducted a text analysis on an online cancer-related forum from Bosnia-Herzegovina. It revealed that the predominant topics of discussion are: general cancer related and time-wise discussions, various treatments, diet, doctors and how to interpret medical reports, information exchange on specific cancer-types, advice to caregivers, religious support, and community support to members suffering from cancer. The most frequently exchanged word referred to the state of: being, being and doing something alone and by oneself. The majority of users of the online community were cancer patients' caregivers. This study represents a starting point for identifying areas for improvement of online support and information for people affected by cancer, primarily in online communities, specifically for Bosnia-Herzegovina, but can be generalized to countries with similar social, cultural, economic and public-health situation.