Analyzing Twitter to Investigate Increased Endometrial Cancer Discourse [ID 1573]

INTRODUCTION: The incidence of endometrial cancer has increased since 1987. Social media plays an important role in health care discussions, as it spreads awareness and supports patients through their treatment, potentially improving outcomes for those affected by endometrial cancer. This study examines discourse around endometrial cancer on Twitter using the #endometrialcancer hashtag over 4 years, focusing on top tweets and user characterization. METHODS: We used the Symplur Signals software to extract data on the #endometrialcancer hashtag. We tracked and identified trends in number of tweets; type of contributor; and analyzed top tweets for content. We categorized tweets into “informational,” “stories,” and “other.” We coded the tone of tweets as positive, negative, or neutral. We excluded non-English tweets and retweets. RESULTS: The use of the #endometrialcancer hashtag increased by over 50% from 2019 to 2022, growing from 3,869 tweets to 6,096 tweets. We analyzed 336 tweets for content; of these, 61% were “informational,” 25% were “stories,” and 14% were some other content. Health care providers/researchers were the primary contributors and comprised 44.1–55.3% of tweets. This was followed by health care/research organizations. Eighty-two percent of the tweets were neutral, with 15% being positive and a small remaining percentage classified as negative. CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS: Endometrial cancer discussions on Twitter have surged, with health care professionals leading the conversation and primarily sharing information about clinical trials and resources. Future research should explore the effect of this new type of information sharing on access to care and treatment for patients.