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Managing Cancer Online?
The Galen Foundation DBA PeopleBeatingCancer is an IRS approved 501C3 non-profit organization. The mission of PeopleBeatingCancer is to be an interactive health communication application (IHCA) for cancer patients, survivors and caregivers.
To put that in everyday terms, I’m a long-term cancer survivor who spends his time researching and writing about my cancer, multiple myeloma, as well as chemotherapy and radiation-induced short, long-term and late stage side effects.
PeopleBeatingCancer provides information and education to thousands of cancer survivors each and every day. And that information is interactive. Meaning people, anywhere, anytime, can ask me a question (s) and receive my reply within hours.
The internet was how I found the evidence-based, non-conventional therapy is pursued after I reached end-stage myeloma.
Antineoplaston therapy (ANP) and the Burzynski Research Institute (BRI) helped me reach complete remission aka cancer-free status where I have remained since.
And here’s the kicker. According to the studies linked and excerpted below, internet use helps people maintain brain health!
The Internet is the reason for PeopleBeatingCancer’s existence.
- Multiple Myeloma Survival – Internet
- Life Over Cancer: Integrative Cancer Treatment
- About PeopleBeatingCancer
- Supporting PeopleBeatingCancer
- PeopleBeatingCancer- 501C3 Non-Profit
Do you have pre-myeloma (SPB, MGUS or SMM), full multiple myeloma or struggle with short, long-term or late stage side effects?
Scroll down the page, post a question or comment and I will put PeopleBeatingCancer to work by reply to your question with evidence-based information.
Thank you,
David Emerson
- Cancer Survivor
- Cancer Coach
- Director PeopleBeatingCancer
Internet usage and the prospective risk of dementia: A population-based cohort study
“Background- Little is known about the long-term cognitive impact of internet usage among older adults. This research characterized the association between various measures of internet usage and dementia.
Results- In 18,154 adults, regular internet usage was associated with approximately half the risk of dementia compared to non-regular usage, CHR (Cause-specific Hazard Ratio)=0.57, 95%CI=0.46-0.71. The association was maintained after adjustments for self-selection into baseline usage (CHR=0.54, 95%CI=0.41-0.72) and signs of cognitive decline at the baseline (CHR=0.62, 95%CI=0.46-0.85). The difference in risk between regular and non-regular users did not vary by educational attainment, race-ethnicity, sex, and generation. In addition, additional periods of regular usage were associated with significantly reduced dementia risk, CHR=0.80, 95%CI=0.68-0.95. However, estimates for daily hours of usage suggested a U-shaped relationship with dementia incidence. The lowest risk was observed among adults with 0.1-2 hours of usage, though estimates were non-significant due to small sample sizes.
Conclusions- Regular internet users experienced approximately half the risk of dementia than non-regular users. Being a regular internet user for longer periods in late adulthood was associated with delayed cognitive impairment, although further evidence is needed on potential adverse effects of excessive usage.”
Internet Use a Modifiable Dementia Risk Factor in Older Adults?
“Self-reported, regular internet use, but not overuse, in older adults is linked to a lower dementia risk, new research suggests…
“Online engagement can develop and maintain cognitive reserve — resiliency against physiological damage to the brain — and increased cognitive reserve can, in turn, compensate for brain aging and reduce the risk of dementia…”
Interactive Health Communication Appliations for people with chronic disease
Background: Interactive Health Communication Applications (IHCAs) are computer-based, usually web-based health information packages for patients that combine information with at least one of
- social support,
- decision support, or
- behaviour change support-
These are innovations in health care and their effects on health are uncertain.
Objectives: To assess the effects of IHCAs for people with chronic disease.
Search strategy: We designed a four-part search strategy. First, we searched electronic bibliographic databases for published work; second, we searched the grey literature and third, we searched for ongoing and recently completed clinical trials in the appropriate databases. Finally, researchers of included studies were contacted, and reference lists from relevant primary and review articles were followed up.
As IHCAs require relatively new technology, the search commenced at 1990 where possible.
Selection criteria: Randomised controlled trials (RCTs) of Interactive Health Communication Applications for adults and children with chronic disease.
Data collection and analysis: One reviewer screened abstracts. Two reviewers screened all candidate studies to determine eligibility, apply quality criteria, and extract data from included studies. Authors of included RCTs were contacted for missing data. Results of RCTs were pooled using a random effects model and standardised mean differences (SMDs) were calculated to provide net effect sizes.
Main results: We screened 24,757 unique citations and retrieved 958 papers for further assessment, yielding 28 RCTs involving 4042 participants. One of these had an inadequate method of concealment of allocation, and sensitivity analyses were performed to determine the effects of including or excluding these data in the meta-analyses.
Results in the abstract are from the meta-analyses excluding data from this study.IHCAs were found to have a positive effect on knowledge (SMD 0.49; 95% confidence interval (CI) 0.14 to 0.84) and on social support (SMD 0.47; 95% CI 0.28 to 0.66).
IHCAs were found to have no effect on self-efficacy (SMD 0.15; 95% CI -0.13 to 0.43) or behavioural outcomes (SMD -0.09; 95% CI -0.49 to 0.32). IHCAs had a negative effect on clinical outcomes (SMD -0.32; 95% CI -0.63 to -0.02).
Reviewers’ conclusions: The number and range of IHCAs is increasing rapidly; however there is a shortage of high quality evaluative data. Consumers who wish to increase their knowledge or social support amongst people with a similar problem may find an IHCA helpful.
However, consumers whose primary aim is to achieve optimal clinical outcomes should not use an IHCA at present.
Further research is needed to determine the reason for this negative effect on clinical outcomes, whether an optimal IHCA can achieve behaviour change and improved health outcomes, and if so, what are the essential features of such an IHCA, and the extent to which they differ according to patient group or condition…”
Cancer Patients Report Better Experiences With Telemedicine Than With In-Person Care
“Cancer patients who use telemedicine report better experiences than cancer patients treated in person, according to study results published in the Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network…
Two key outcomes the researchers assessed were patients’ access to care and provider concern related to patients’ questions or worries.
Patients were more likely to report better access to care if they used telemedicine rather than in-person visits…
The researchers noted additional benefits of telemedicine appointments, including timeliness; cost savings related to travel, parking, and lost income; and the ability to engage a caregiver in the appointment when in-person involvement would not be possible.
“In this study, a large oncology dataset showed that telemedicine resulted in better patient experience of care in terms of access and care provider concern compared with in-person visits,” the researchers concluded. “Patient experience of care with telemedicine visits did not change over time, suggesting that implementing telemedicine was effective…”