We end lung cancer awareness month with a very interesting topic.  The next #LCSM Tweet Chat on Thursday, November 30th at 5 PM Pacific/ 8 PM Eastern will discuss “Expanding the web of knowledge in #lungcancer.” The moderator for this chat is Dr. David Tom Cooke (@DavidCookeMD).

There is a vast amount of information on the optimal treatments and approaches to beat lung cancer.  Whether it is lung cancer screening, surgery for early stage disease, SBRT for patients with early stage disease who are not candidates for surgery, the importance of molecular testing for tumors, opportunities for immunotherapy for advanced tumors, and the benefits of clinical trials; there is important information that must be spread or disseminated to patients, their families and healthcare providers.

Yet despite the readily available evidence based information, >80% of Americans are unaware that screening for lung cancer is recommended and covered by insurance at no cost for people who are at the highest risk (American Lung Association Lung Health Barometer).  In addition, <5% of adult cancer patients enroll in cancer clinical trials (Murthy VH, et al. JAMA. 2004)

#LCSM and social media has prided itself as a method of disseminating quality, evidenced based information to the lung cancer community.  This of course involves our tweet chats, but also our web page and Where to Find Trusted Lung Cancer Info tab.  However social media has its strengths and weakness in reaching all stakeholders.  For example only 34% of people 65 and older visit at least one social media site a year.  Women use social media more than men (72% compared to 66%), Whites and Hispanics more than Blacks (64% and 79% compared to 63%) and social media reaches only 60% of rural Americans.

On Thursday, November 30th, we hope to discuss what are good and not so good ways to disseminate lung cancer screening, diagnosis and treatment best practices?  Also during the process, perhaps we can generate new and innovative ideas!

With the above goals, here are questions that will be discussed during our November 30th Tweet Chat:

T1 What are the strengths of social media in spreading info about best and newer treatments of #lungcancer to patients?

T2 What are the weaknesses of social media in spreading info about best and newer treatments of #lungcancer to patients?

T3 What about doctors, care providers and hospital administrators in smaller community settings?  What is best way to disseminate up to date information?

T4 Should our approach change to disseminate #lungcancer information to patients in #rural communities?  What approaches might work the best to reach rural America?

T5 How do we measure the effectiveness of interventions for spreading information?

T6 What effective methods have you seen for spreading information about #lungcancer or other #cancers? Why are they effective?

Please remember to include #LCSM in ALL your tweets so the other chat participants can see them. You can read a primer on participating in the chat here.  Hope you’ll join us!