Exploring the efficacy and nature of online cancer support services

As cancer survivors live longer, reduction of psychological distress has been recognized as a vital part of achieving improved quality of life. Rapid expansion of the Internet has allowed for the availability of a wide variety of online support services such as diaries, blogs, list serves and discussion boards. Therapeutic targets of these services include promotion of the patient/caregiver's individual resources, relief of cancer-related distress, increasing health knowledge, providing support to house-bound patients or those in rural areas, and a means of empowerment for patients and families. Online services may perform a number of functions, including bereavement (reporting the death of a loved one), the expression of intense emotions in a subjectively private space, cognitive processing, information giving and seeking, encouragement/support, and expression of personal experience and opinion. Concerns about delivering support in this manner include possible ethical issues and problems with physicians who may alienate Internet-educated patients. Currently the Leukemia & Lymphoma Society offers two types of online support services in addition to in-person support groups and a peer-to-peer match program. Programs include an active discussion board with 33 forums and weekly moderated live chats for lymphoma patients. An online user survey connected to the boards will allow us to explore the efficacy of online support services for our patient and caregiver populations. It will reveal who is sharing information, for what purpose, and the depth to which these users depend on the Internet for support. Results of this survey could help to design better online support services.