Researchers have found that unmet social needs was associated with less trust in cancer information received from doctors and the health-care system, according to study findings led by the American Cancer Society and published in Psycho-Oncology.
“Public trust in health authorities is so essential because it influences uptake of health recommendations like routine cancer screening and vaccination,” stated lead study author Jordan Baeker Bispo, PhD, MPH, Principal Scientist, Cancer Disparity Research at the American Cancer Society. “Social inequality is an important driver of medical mistrust. These findings are important as we need to better understand this dynamic in the context of cancer information sharing and cancer control.”
Study Methods and Rationale
Public participation in preventive services, such as vaccination and cancer screening, depends on a certain level of public trust in the health-care system and its public health messaging. Social inequality can drive mistrust in health authorities, which could, in turn, prevent trust in cancer information and preventive services.
The researchers looked at data from the 2022 Health Information National Trends Survey to determine associations between unmet social needs and trust in sources of cancer information. They explored patient data according to the number of unmet social needs, which was tabulated from survey items on housing, transportation, and food insecurity. Then the survey respondents indicated a binary level of trust of high vs low regarding cancer information from doctors, scientists, and government agencies, and then for trust in the health-care system overall.
Key Study Findings
The researchers found that doctors were the most trusted source of cancer information at 72.6% followed by scientists at 56.9% and then government agencies at 29.2%.
Unmet social needs were associated with a reduced degree of trust in cancer information from doctors, however, with adjusted odds ratios (aOR) showing a 39% reduction in trust for survey participants with one unmet social need (aOR = 0.61; 95% confidence interval [CI] = 0.43–0.86), and a 51% reduction for respondents with at least two unmet social needs (aOR = 0.49; 95% CI = 0.35–0.70).
More than one-third of survey respondents (36.1%) indicated a high level of trust in the health-care system overall, but the trust was 61% lower in participants with at least two unmet social needs (aOR = 0.39; 95% CI = 0.25–0.62).
“Addressing social needs in the clinical setting may enhance patient trust in cancer messaging from providers,” Dr. Baeker Bispo added. “Many health systems have adopted social needs screening programs to help patients access the resources they need beyond the clinic walls. These programs could have a positive downstream impact on communication about cancer control by enhancing the trustworthiness of providers and health systems at large.”
“Evidence shows that patient navigation can bridge a number of gaps and address diverse needs across patient populations. When it comes to cancer care, patient navigation offers support to manage and traverse an often overwhelming and scary prognosis by increasing understanding of treatment options,” said Lisa A. Lacasse, President of ACS’s advocacy affiliate, the American Cancer Society Cancer Action Network (ACS CAN).
Disclosure: For full disclosures of the study authors, visit onlinelibrary.wiley.com.
