Utilizing Social Media Advertisements and Participant Social Networks to Recruit African American Breast Cancer Survivors: Design and Rationale

Connor, Avonne E.; Dibble, Kate E.; Visvanathan, Kala

doi:10.3389/fpubh.2022.931102

Cited by 10 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 28 publications

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“…Although evidence suggests that targeted social media campaigns may enhance recruitment of minorities and marginalized populations, 41 precautions must be taken to avoid harm or to propagate health disparities related to limited e-health literacy, access, or stigma. [42][43][44][45] Future studies may consider using microtrials-a method developed by Facebook using a proprietary algorithm to target under-represented groups through tailored advertisements and targeted zip codes 8 -to enhance minority population recruitment. Although researchers should weigh potential biases introduced through social media recruitment, 46 our results suggest that this strategy can produce a sample aligned with the study's recruitment goals.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhancing Efficiency and Reach Using Facebook to Recruit Breast Cancer Survivors for a Telephone-Based Supportive Care Randomized Trial During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Ejem,

Wechsler,

Gallups

et al. 2023

JCO Oncology Practice

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PURPOSE Evidence supporting social media–based recruitment of cancer survivors is limited. This paper describes how we used Facebook during the COVID-19 pandemic to augment our recruitment of breast cancer survivors for our two-site telephone-based randomized clinical trial (RCT) at Dartmouth-Hitchcock Medical Center and the University of Alabama at Birmingham. METHODS Originally a two-site RCT of a telephone-delivered breast cancer survivorship intervention, we extended our clinic-based recruitment to Facebook. Participant characteristics, geographic reach, and baseline outcomes were compared across recruitment sources (ie, two clinics and Facebook) using descriptive statistics and effect sizes. RESULTS Enrollment rates (20%-29%) were comparable across recruitment sources. The 21-month Facebook marketing campaign accounted for 59% (n = 179/303) of our total sample and had the greatest geographic reach, recruiting women from 24 states. The Facebook campaign reached a total of 51,787 unique individuals and cost $88.44 in US dollars (USD) per enrolled participant. Clinic samples had a greater proportion of women who were widowed (8% v 1%; P = .03) and Facebook had a higher proportion of women with a household income over $40,000 USD (83% v 71%; P = .02). There were no statistically significant differences between Facebook and the two clinics on baseline survey scores. CONCLUSION Augmenting traditional recruitment with Facebook increased our RCT's geographic and sociodemographic reach and supported meeting recruitment goals in a timely way. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, cancer survivorship researchers should consider using social media as a recruitment strategy while weighing the advantages and potential biases introduced through such strategies.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Enhancing Efficiency and Reach Using Facebook to Recruit Breast Cancer Survivors for a Telephone-Based Supportive Care Randomized Trial During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Ejem,

Wechsler,

Gallups

et al. 2023

JCO Oncology Practice

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“…Social media platforms, especially Facebook (Meta) and Instagram, have also been utilised to recruit patients for research, an activity that traditionally would take a large amount of time and resources [17, 18]. Researchers and academic organisations can now use social media to aid recruitment of participants for research trials, which is especially important for reaching ethnic and racial minorities who are under-represented in bio-medical research [19].…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Role of Social Media and Breast Cancer: How Does It Impact Patients?

Gandamihardja¹,

Liyanage²,

Coutee³

et al. 2023

Breast Care

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Introduction Patients are increasingly turning to other sources for their health information. Social media has become mainstream, and the easy access to online communities, health professionals and shared experiences of other patients have made social media a place many patients turn to. Methods In this qualitative report, two patients who have had breast cancer describe the reasons why they use social media, what they perceive the advantages and disadvantages are, and what the impact of social media has been through their cancer treatment and beyond. Results The reasons why patients turn to social media are varied. These can include information gathering, peer support, shared experiences and advocacy. There appear to be advantages and disadvantages, however, overall, the impact seems to be a positive one when used judiciously. Discussion It is clear that social media has a role to play in healthcare, whether by providing meaningful social connections, delivery of information or psychological support. Healthcare professionals perhaps should consider the importance of social media in their practice.

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“…Detailed recruitment methods of this cross-sectional study have been previously described ( 26 ). Recruitment from social media platform click-oriented ads via Meta and Instagram began on January 5, 2022 and completed on August 18, 2022.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…As a next step to address this limitation and to acquire a better understanding of the comorbidity burden and prevalence of behavioral risk factors associated with CVD risk among Black breast cancer survivors in Maryland, we conducted a pilot study of Black breast cancer survivors living in Maryland using social media recruitment strategies. Our team piloted study methods to inform a future community-based intervention study of Black breast cancer survivors at high risk of poor outcomes due to comorbid conditions and social inequities ( 26 ). Maryland is a significant resource to research breast cancer disparities due to its racial and socioeconomic diversity ( 27 ), particularly by county of residence as Prince George's County has one of the highest median household incomes in the US according to 2019 data ($84,920 compared to Baltimore City with a median household income of $50,379) ( 28 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Lifestyle factors in Black female breast cancer survivors—Descriptive results from an online pilot study

Connor

Dibble²,

Visvanathan³

2023

Front. Public Health

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BackgroundBreast cancer (BC) research examining disparities in cancer survivorship and modifiable risk behaviors has been mostly cancer-specific, leaving relevant gaps in disparities research relating to other cancer survivorship outcomes, including cardiovascular disease (CVD). Maintaining healthy lifestyle behaviors is a critical component of successful cancer survivorship, where unhealthy behaviors may increase the risk for recurrence, second primary cancers, and incidence of new comorbid conditions, including CVD. The current study describes BC survivorship factors among an online pilot study of Black BC survivors in Maryland, with a focus on the burden of obesity, comorbidity, and behavioral factors associated with CVD risk.MethodsUtilizing social media recruitment strategies and survivor networks, we recruited 100 Black female BC survivors to complete an online survey. Descriptive characteristics (demographic, clinical, and lifestyle factors) were analyzed in terms of frequencies, means, standard deviations (SD) overall and by county.ResultsThe average ages at time of survey and at primary BC diagnosis were 58.6 years (SD = 10.1) and 49.1 years (SD = 10.2), respectively. More than half of the survivors reported having hypertension (51%); and while only 7% reported being obese at the time of BC diagnosis, 54% reported being obese at the time of survey which was on average 9 years post BC diagnosis. Only 28% of the survivors reported meeting weekly exercise recommendations. While 70% were never smokers, most ever smokers resided in Baltimore City/Baltimore County (n = 18 ever smokers).ConclusionOur pilot study identified at-risk BC survivors in Maryland due to the high prevalence of CVD risk factors (hypertension, obesity, limited exercise). These pilot study methods will inform a future statewide multilevel prospective study to improve health behaviors among Black BC survivors.

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Utilizing Social Media Advertisements and Participant Social Networks to Recruit African American Breast Cancer Survivors: Design and Rationale

Cited by 10 publications

References 28 publications

Enhancing Efficiency and Reach Using Facebook to Recruit Breast Cancer Survivors for a Telephone-Based Supportive Care Randomized Trial During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Enhancing Efficiency and Reach Using Facebook to Recruit Breast Cancer Survivors for a Telephone-Based Supportive Care Randomized Trial During the COVID-19 Pandemic

The Role of Social Media and Breast Cancer: How Does It Impact Patients?

Lifestyle factors in Black female breast cancer survivors—Descriptive results from an online pilot study

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