“Fake news.” It’s a term that creates more uncertainty than clarity. If everyone started labeling everything as fake news, how can anyone tell fact from fiction? And yet, we are increasingly bombarded with medical “facts” as we enter disease search terms in our search engines and smartphone apps.

The abundance of information is amplified by Artificial Intelligence algorithms. In itself, this is not a bad thing. When programmed by responsible authorities who base responses to medical questions in peer-reviewed research, most responses are reliable—but not a substitute for personal consultation with your doctor. Yet, the availability of such information is a fact of life. As I posted in a recent blog, chatbots are here to stay.

However, there is another rampant source of clinical input that springs from grassroots social media users. For better or for worse, services like Facebook, Instagram, Google+, Twitter, and more have universalized connecting with family, friends…and a virtually infinite number of strangers. A 2018 blog post by the Institute for Health Policy and Leadership (Loma Linda University Healthy) carries the title, “Social Media: the Good, the Bad, and the Ugly.” While identifying many of its blessings, the author expresses concern that habitually turning to it can “lead to poor health behaviors and outcomes.”

TikTok: Mixed Information

TikTok is rapidly competing with other social media platforms to gain the most users. According to a Pew research survey, TikTok claims the “largest jump in users between 2021 and 2023 compared to any other social media platform.” A 2022 survey of two thousand U.S. adults reports that 1 in 5 Americans turn to TikTok before their doctor when seeking treatment for a health condition, and 1 in 3 GenZ users said they obtained health information from TikTok.^[i]

A 2024 published study of 1172 women who access health information on TikTok found that “the entire sample reported that they think that misinformation is prevalent on TikTok to at least some extent…”^[ii] While the participants identified overlapping sources (93.08% said they had gotten TikTok information from health professionals, and 93.86% said their information was from general users), they showed preference for health professionals as sources, and were more likely to act on information from them vs. general users.

How much influence do TikTok videos have over healthcare consumers? An Aug. 21, 2024 news report published on MDLinx cites a Kaiser Family Foundation poll revealing that “Nearly 4 in 10 people say they trust information about health issues they see on TikTok.” This suggests that many users find TikTok information credible.

TikTok and Prostate Cancer

The majority of health information on TikTok is focused on mental health and weight loss, followed by vaccines, abortion, prescription drugs, and birth control—much of which pertains more to women’s than men’s stated health concerns. But prostate cancer (PCa) should be a big concern for men, given that 13% of men will be diagnosed with PCa in their lifetime.

A research team primarily out of New York University used #prostatecancer to identify 55 TikTok videos specifically on PCa, with 134,944 individual views. Here are some of their results:

• Content was primarily directed at raising awareness (31%) or sharing a patient’s story (29%).
• Only 15% were informational videos about screening, treatment, and/or side effects.
• There were three (5%) videos each encouraging the use of complementary/alternative medicine and new technology.
• Fifty-three unique publishers were identified, with a median of 786 followers and 6294 likes.
• Six videos (10.9%) had apparent commercial bias (e.g., advertising incontinence pads).
• Among 17 videos (totaling 95,285 views) with objective information, eight (47%, 3795 views) had a significant amount of misinformation (e.g., promoting routine PSA screening beginning at age 30 years, promoting a “miracle cure” beverage).^[iii]

A more recent analysis of 61 TikTok videos on genitourinary cancers (bladder, prostate, kidney) found that under half were contributed by healthcare practitioners (29), while 22 were misinformative primarily due to outdated data. “More than half of the videos could provide good content on the diseases’ symptoms and examinations,” while definitions and outcomes were neglected. The authors concluded that “…most videos (n = 59, 96.72%) on TikTok were of poor to mediocre quality.” They summed it up as an “information hodgepodge.”^[iv]

If you or a loved one has concerns about prostate cancer or any other prostate abnormality, The Sperling Prostate Center highly recommends speaking with your primary care doctor or other trusted healthcare provider. If you want to supplement by turning to chatbots or social media, please remember to reserve judgment regarding the content. I’m proud that our blogs provide research-based information, in addition to our own expertise. Please visit our blog pages, and I hope they are helpful.

NOTE: This content is solely for purposes of information and does not substitute for diagnostic or medical advice. Talk to your doctor if you have health concerns or questions of a personal medical nature.

References

[i] CharityRX News. “The Shifting Role of Influence and Authority in the Rx Drug & Health Supplement Market.” Sep. 21, 2022.
[ii] Kirkpatrick CE, Lawrie LL. TikTok as a Source of Health Information and Misinformation for Young Women in the United States: Survey Study. JMIR Infodemiology. 2024 May 21;4:e54663.
[iii] Xu AJ, Taylor J, Gao T, Mihalcea R, Perez-Rosas V, Loeb S. TikTok and prostate cancer: misinformation and quality of information using validated questionnaires. BJU Int. 2021 Oct;128(4):435-437.
[iv] Xue X, Yang X, Xu W, Liu G, Xie Y, Ji Z. TikTok as an Information Hodgepodge: Evaluation of the Quality and Reliability of Genitourinary Cancers Related Content. Front Oncol. 2022 Feb 15;12:789956.