Evaluation of NCI-Designated Cancer Center and Comprehensive Cancer Center Survivorship-Focused Websites: Information Provided and Accessibility
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Rutgers Cancer Institute of New Jersey, New Brunswick, NJ
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Background: Individuals with a history of cancer increasingly seek health information from online resources, including NCI-designated Cancer Center websites. Centers receive NCI designation because they provide excellent care and engage in cutting-edge research. However, the information presented on these webpages and their accessibility is unknown. An evaluation of the survivorship-focused webpages from NCI-designated Cancer Centers is needed to assess survivorship information and accessibility of these webpages. Methods: We conducted an evaluation of the survivorship-focused webpages from 64 NCI-designated Cancer Centers. We evaluated where survivorship-focused webpages were housed, if there was a survivorship clinic or program, target audience of the webpage, how cancer survivor was defined, contact methods, and available resources. Accessibility outcomes included readability, font type, font size, color scheme, and alternative text (alt text) descriptors. An artificial intelligence (AI) audit was conducted to assess if the webpage was compliant with national accessibility guidelines. Results: Most cancer centers had a survivorship-focused webpage, with 72% located on the cancer center’s website and 28% on a health system website. Survivorship information available varied considerably and was often lacking in detail. Although three-quarters of webpages targeted patients only, variable definitions of cancer survivor were observed. Accessibility issues identified included inconsistent use of alt text descriptors, font size smaller than 15 points, and color schemes without adequate contrast. The average reading-level of information presented was above 12th grade. Only 9% of webpages were compliant with online accessibility guidelines; 72% semicompliant and 21% were noncompliant. Conclusions: Information presented on NCI-designated Cancer Center survivorship-focused webpages was inconsistent, often lacking, and inaccessible. NCI-designated Cancer Centers are role models for cancer research in the United States and have an obligation to provide survivorship information. Changes to content and website design are needed to provide better information for individuals seeking resources and health information relative to their cancer and care.
Submitted July 21, 2023; final revision received January 23, 2024; accepted for publication February 1, 2024. Published online August 16, 2024.
Author contributions: Conceptualization: All authors. Data acquisition, analysis, and interpretation: All authors. Supervision: Mikesell, Crabtree. Writing—original draft: All authors. Writing—review & editing: All authors.
Data availability statement: All data supporting the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author (R.T.K.) upon reasonable request.
Disclosures: The authors have disclosed that they have not received any financial consideration from any person or organization to support the preparation, analysis, results, or discussion of this article.
Funding: Research reported in this publication was supported by the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health under award number R01 CA257197.
Disclaimer: The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the National Institutes of Health.
Supplementary material: Supplementary material associated with this article is available online at https://doi.org/10.6004/jnccn.2024.7017. The supplementary material has been supplied by the author(s) and appears in its originally submitted form. It has not been edited or vetted by JNCCN. All contents and opinions are solely those of the author. Any comments or questions related to the supplementary materials should be directed to the corresponding author.
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