When it comes to skin cancer, seeing pictures of motivates people to regularly check their own moles, according to a new research paper from the School of Public Health and Health Systemsat the University of Waterloo, Waterloo, ON, Canada
The paper, published in the July 31, 2013 issues of the Journal of the American Academy of Dermatology, found that visual images of skin cancer are most effective in educating patients and prompting skin self-examinations (SSE).[1]
Skin cancer is the most common type of cancer in North America. In Canada, there are expected to be 6,000 new cases of melanoma, the most dangerous kind of skin cancer, and more than 81,000 cases of non-melanoma skin cancer this year alone. This year more than 2,000,000 cases of non-melanoma skin cancer with < 1,000 deaths are expected in the US.
Incorporating images into clinical practice when educating patients can be a powerful tool in the fight against skin cancer
Systematic review
For their study, the researchers undertook a systematic review of available, peer-reviewed, data on SSE and skincancer, searching through seven medical databases (PubMed-MEDLINE, EMBASE, PsycINFO, Sociological Abstracts, Social Sciences Full Text, ERIC, and ABI/INFORM) which resulted in 5,330 citations. A total of 25 peer-reviewed studies met the inclusion criteria.The purpose of the data collection wasto examine the outcomes of studies that used visual images as part of their patient education strategy and methodology. Their objective was to describe the impact of visual images on patient SSE knowledge, attitudes, behaviors, and accuracy.
Images persuasive – text not enough
?Visual images capture our attention and are persuasive. They also help us to learn and remember,? said Laurie Hoffman-Goetz PhD, MPH, a professor at the Faculty of Applied Health Sciences and co-author on the paper.The systematic review found that exposure to images of skin cancer motivated people to check their skin more frequently and accurately. The researchers also found that providing text descriptions alone were not effective in aiding skin self-examination. ?Images motivate health behaviors in ways text does not,? said Jennifer McWhirter, a PhD candidate funded by the Canadian Institutes of Health Research, and the second co-author on the paper.
Patient education
The paper?s findings could help inform patient education strategies and public health communication efforts. ?Skin self-examination plays an important role in detecting melanoma early. Many cases of melanoma are first detected by patients themselves,? McWhirter explained.
?Incorporating images into clinical practice when educating patients can be a powerful tool in the fight against skin cancer.? Hoffman-Goetz noted.
Previous study
A previous study by McWhirter and Hoffmann-Goetz, published in the June 2012 issue of the Journal of Cancer Education, the official journal of the American Association for Cancer Education, showed that whileVisual images play an important role in educating the public about skin cancer prevention, the lack of guiding theory and standardized assessment instruments can introduce bias in how images are selected and used in research on skin cancer education.[2]
For more information:
[1] McWhirter JE, Hoffman-Goetz L. Visual images for patient skin self-examination and melanoma detection: A systematic review of published studies.J Am Acad Dermatol. 2013 Jul;69(1):47-55.e9. doi: 10.1016/j.jaad.2013.01.031. Epub 2013 Mar 6. [Abstract][PubMed]
[2] McWhirter JE, Hoffman-Goetz L. Visual images for skin cancer prevention: a systematic review of qualitative studies. J Cancer Educ. 2012 Jun;27(2):202-16. doi: 10.1007/s13187-012-0355-y.[Abstract][PubMed]
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