Effectiveness of a tool to increase understanding of breast cancer media articles

Women aged 45 or younger with breast cancer, or those who are at high risk of breast cancer due to a family history of the disease or genetic test results indicating risk, have distinct health risks and needs. Facing Our Risk of Cancer Empowered (FORCE), a non-profit advocacy organisation, developed an online resource designed to address these needs. In-person surveys were administered to compare baseline and post-test knowledge of two cohorts of 55 volunteer participants. Both groups read a printed media news article related to breast cancer research. The intervention group also read a printed brief review that provided a summary of research findings, and discussion and ratings of research evidence and reporting quality. Participants were recruited at two FORCE conferences. Data were collected at the conference sites. Pilot and follow-up sample results were pooled and analysed using t-test comparisons. The intervention resource use was associated with a significantly greater increase in knowledge than only reading the media news article. An online tool developed to respond to audience needs, offering ratings of evidence quality and relevance, can help readers to better understand research reporting.