Lessons Learned from Minority Cancer Survivors Podcasts

The promotion of health messages through social media, such as podcasts, is steadily on the rise. Podcasts are multimedia digital files made available online for later downloading to portable devices, like tablets. The Community Engagement and Outreach Core of the Center for Equal Health (CEH) utilized podcasts to address cancer health disparities. As a community-based participatory research tool, the podcasts distribute key cancer prevention, research and behavioral messages while utilizing an innovative delivery method, taking into account culture, language and literacy. Seven podcasts include five-minute interviews with African-American and Hispanic-American breast and prostate cancer survivors in Tampa, Florida. A SurveyMonkey questionnaire follows each podcasts, gathering demographical data and perceptions from viewers, including thoughts on cancer and screening behaviors. CEH associates, along with Community Health Workers, presented the podcasts and administrated the surveys at community events and within cancer education talking circles. Community members were also solicited to view the podcasts and complete the surveys online through the CEH Website. Of the 183 survey respondents, 76% has a family member diagnosis with cancer, and nearly 79% were very willing to get tested for cancer in the next six months after watching the podcasts. The audience of survey respondents were mostly female (87.4%) and mainly between the ages of 41 to 55 (30.9%), which is within the age range for recommended cancer screening. The majority of the respondents (66.9%) indicated they learned something new from the podcasts, including “rectal exams should be done with PSA” and “cancer is not a death sentence.”