Mainstream News Portrays Cancer Treatments in Overly Positive Light

Adverse effects, alternatives to aggressive care, or death rarely mentioned

Approximately half of all Americans diagnosed with cancer will die of their disease or related complications, yet articles on cancer care in the major print media rarely discuss both aggressive and palliative treatment options, and almost never report on end-of-life care.

“Very few news reports about cancer discuss death and dying, and even those that do generally do not mention palliative and hospice care,” write the authors of a report published in the Archives of Internal Medicine. “It is surprising that few articles discuss death and dying, considering that half of all patients diagnosed as having cancer will not survive.”

The team analyzed the content of 436 randomly selected articles about cancer published between 2005 and 2007 in five leading national magazines and eight major newspapers in New York, Chicago and Philadelphia areas. These publications were chosen, explain the authors, because they are considered primary sources of health information that is trusted by a majority of readers of diverse ages and backgrounds.

KEY FINDINGS INCLUDE:

• Most articles (57.1%) discussed aggressive treatments exclusively.
• Less than one-third (30%) mentioned that aggressive treatments can result in adverse events, and only 13.1% reported that such treatments can fail.
• While 32.1% focused on cancer survival, only7.6% reported on patients dying of cancer, and just 3.2% presented outcomes.
• Almost no reports (0.5%) focused solely on hospice and palliative end-of-life care, and very few (2.5%) presented both aggressive and palliative treatments options.

“For many patients with cancer, it is important to know about palliative and hospice care, because this information can help them make decisions that realistically reflect their prognosis and the risks and potential benefits of treatment,” the authors point out. “Furthermore, the absence of reporting about hospice and palliative care is significant, given the numerous well-documented benefits for patients and family members.”

WIDELY ACCEPTED BENEFITS OF HOSPICE AND PALLIATIVE CARE INCLUDE:

• High-quality care
• Excellent patient and family satisfaction
• Reduced costs
• Decreased suffering at the end of life

“Because of these benefits, Institute of Medicine reports, consensus panels, and oncology professional societies agree that comprehensive cancer care should incorporate more that disease-modifying treatment,” note the authors.

The lack of coverage of end-of-life options by major media can affect patients’ treatments decisions and expectations, especially if patients’ informational needs are not met by their clinicians, suggest the authors. “A lack of reporting on palliative and hospice care also has public health implications, because when media bring increased attention to certain topics, they often enjoy greater individual, community and political support.”

Source: “Cancer and the Media,” Archives of Internal Medicine; March 22, 2010; 170(6):518-520. Fishman J, Ten Have T, Casasrett D; Center for Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics, Annenberg School of Communications, VA Center for Health Equity Research and Promotion, Leonard Davis Institute of Health Economics and School of Medicine, University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia.