Melanoma Information on the Internet:
User beware
Timothy M. Johnson and Christopher
Bichakjian
Photo:
Marcia Ledford |
Popular Internet sites on melanoma may seem trustworthy, but the information
they provide is often only skin-deep, according to physicians at the U-M Medical
School. The study suggests that people should be skeptical when using the Web
to learn about melanoma, and that physicians should guide patients to sites
that give complete and accurate information.
“No one expects every Web site to include every bit of information available,
but the lack of even basic preventive, diagnostic, treatment and risk factor
data on so many sites amazed us,” says Christopher Bichakjian, M.D., a
lecturer in dermatology. “The fact that melanoma so often strikes young
adults —who are more likely to turn to the Internet for medical information
— makes melanoma Web site quality even more important.”
Bichakjian and his colleagues found Web sites for their study by searching for
“melanoma” on six of the most popular commercial search engines,
as well as two well-known medical search engines. After discarding dead links,
duplicates and pages with no facts, they found 74 Web sites to assess against
a “gold standard” checklist of 35 factors developed by the National
Comprehensive Cancer Center Network.
Fourteen percent of these sites had erroneous information. Most inaccuracies
were relatively minor, but some were dangerous. “Some sites recommended
unnecessary tests and more invasive, unnecessary surgery,” says Timothy
M. Johnson, M.D., director of the U-M melanoma clinic and the William B. Taylor
Professor of Dermatology.
Other Medical School collaborators in the study included Sybil Biermann, M.D.,
assistant professor of surgery; Timothy Wang, M.D. (Residency 1997), clinical
assistant professor of dermatology; Jennifer L. Schwartz, M.D., lecturer in
dermatology; and Janette Hall, M.S., senior research associate in orthopedic
surgery.
—KG
The Web sites identified in the U-M study that were accessible with standard
search engines and contained the most complete and accurate melanoma information
were:
www.med.usyd.edu.au/medicine/melanoma/index.htm
www.melanoma.net/index.cfm
www.melanoma.com
http://ontumor.com/melanoma/wynk/index.htm
 
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