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WASHINGTON -- One-quarter of 40 YouTube videos ostensibly about colorectal cancer featured "content of minimal or no relevance to colorectal cancer or screening," according to a study presented here.
Among them: the most popular video that turned up on the site with a search for "colon cancer," with some 3 million views.
"That was what was striking," lead author Donelle Cummings, MD, of SUNY Downstate Medical Center in Brooklyn, N.Y., told MedPage Today. Cummings and colleague Prameela Rao, MD, presented their findings at .
The pair searched YouTube for the terms "colon cancer" and "colon cancer screening" over 3 weeks last year, evaluating the top 20 most-viewed videos' content and associations for both terms.
They did not find much educational content in videos with the most views, Cummings said.
"Providers must become familiar with web-based content and patients' use of it for gathering information about colorectal cancer screening," Cummings and Rao wrote in their poster. "Stakeholders must develop novel methods to educate and engage individuals using YouTube and similar platforms" to increase knowledge and screening rates.
About one-quarter of the videos included "expert or professional testimonial or narration," the authors reported. Nearly half included information on colorectal cancer pathology, screening methods, and the benefits of screening. About one-quarter discussed risk factors, while 14 discussed signs and symptoms, and 14 treatments. Six discussed screening risks.
Two videos were actually advertisements.
Concerning the most-viewed video, Cummings noted it featured video of an endoscopy with limited dialogue -- and nothing about colorectal cancer or screening.
Among the 40 videos, 16 were user-generated or independent. Cummings and Rao found seven posted by non-profits or public healthcare organizations, and five from national or international societies.
YouTube is second among all websites in total views, the authors noted, and "promotional messages have been shown to increase" screening rates. They added, "As individuals increasingly rely on web-based media to gather information, they may have difficulty finding quality content."
So "it's very important" for providers to be aware of what content is on popular sites, Cummings said, noting that educating patients is part of the job. "We have to kind of adapt with the times," he added. Cummings advised providers look for quality online resources and steer patients to those, particularly any hosted by academic institutions and national societies.
Cummings encouraged stakeholders to work with YouTube to produce more certified videos on the site. The site has already begun displaying more certified videos recently "with high-quality content," he said. "I'm encouraged by what I've seen lately."
Primary Source
Digestive Disease Week
Cummings D, et al "Does view count count? Youtube as a source for informational content about colorectal cancer screening" DDW 2018; Abstract Mo1637.