Mattsson Susanne, Olsson Erik Martin Gustaf, Johansson Birgitta, Carlsson Maria
Department of Public Health and Caring Sciences, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
Department of Women's and Children's Health, Uppsala University, Uppsala, Sweden.
J Med Internet Res. 2017 May 15;19(5):e163. doi: 10.2196/jmir.6830.
The access to various forms of support during the disease trajectory is crucial for people with cancer. The provision and use of Internet health services is increasing, and it is important to further investigate the preferences and demographical characteristics of its users. Investigating the uptake and perceived value of Internet health services is a prerequisite to be able to meet the needs in the targeted group.
The objective of this study was to investigate health-related Internet use among people with cancer.
The health online support questionnaire (HOSQ), examining the incentives for health-related Internet support use, was administered in two Swedish outpatient hospital clinics. Of the 350 copies of the questionnaire handed out, 285 (81.4%) were returned, answered by persons with cancer who had completed treatment or were under active surveillance or another medical treatment.
A total of 215 (76.2%, 215/282) participants reported Internet use since being diagnosed with cancer. Internet-users were younger (P<.001), more likely to have a partner (P=.03), and had a higher level of education than nonusers (P<.001). The most common health-related activity on the Internet was searching for information (77.2%, 166/215), and users searched significantly more immediately after diagnosis compared with later on (P<.001). Use of My Healthcare Contacts was considered the most valuable Internet activity. Having a university degree (P ˂.001) and being younger in age (P=.01) were associated with a significantly higher frequency of health- related Internet use.
People with cancer turn to the Internet for informational support that enables them to influence their care and to stay in touch with friends and relatives. Demographical differences regarding the uptake of Web-based support remains. This indicates a need for research on how to bridge this digital gap. By learning more about the use of health-related support on the Web among people with cancer, adequate support can be offered and potential strain reduced.
在疾病发展过程中获得各种形式的支持对癌症患者至关重要。互联网健康服务的提供和使用正在增加，进一步调查其用户的偏好和人口统计学特征很重要。调查互联网健康服务的使用情况和感知价值是满足目标群体需求的先决条件。
本研究的目的是调查癌症患者与健康相关的互联网使用情况。
在瑞典的两家门诊医院诊所发放了健康在线支持问卷（HOSQ），该问卷用于调查与健康相关的互联网支持使用的动机。共发放问卷350份，回收285份（81.4%），由已完成治疗或正在接受积极监测或其他治疗的癌症患者回答。
共有215名（76.2%，215/282）参与者报告自被诊断患有癌症以来使用过互联网。互联网用户比非用户更年轻（P<0.001），更有可能有伴侣（P=0.03），且受教育程度更高（P<0.001）。互联网上最常见的与健康相关的活动是搜索信息（77.2%，166/215），与之后相比，用户在诊断后立即搜索的次数明显更多（P<0.001）。使用“我的医疗联系人”被认为是最有价值的互联网活动。拥有大学学位（P<0.001）和年龄较小（P=0.01）与与健康相关的互联网使用频率显著更高有关。
癌症患者会借助互联网获取信息支持，这使他们能够影响自己的治疗，并与朋友和亲属保持联系。在基于网络的支持使用方面，人口统计学差异仍然存在。这表明需要研究如何弥合这一数字鸿沟。通过更多地了解癌症患者在网络上使用与健康相关的支持情况，可以提供充分的支持并减轻潜在压力。
