Cancer Prevention and Risk Communication

Health-related risk involves the probability of a negative health event, such as being diagnosed with cancer. The importance of risk depends not only upon this probability, but also upon the severity of the disease in question and its potential negative consequences of morbidity and mortality. Risk communication involves the open exchange between physicians and their patients regarding health-related information about risks toward the goal of more informed decisions about prevention and treatment. Although physicians and patients may be the primary communicators about patients' risks of developing cancer and possible preventive actions (such as cancer screening), risk information is also communicated by the media, in public health campaigns, and by researchers in published findings in scientific journals. It is important for the general public to be able to interpret how risk information is presented in advertising and marketing arenas in addition to how it is presented at the doctor's office.

In the context of cancer prevention, risk communication involves several elements: a focus on behavioral, environmental, and/or genetic risks; discussion of risks and benefits of various cancer screening procedures; and possibly genetic counseling for those with a family history of cancer. This kind of risk communication is a form of science and technology communication. Health-related risk and cancer information is communicated about by many individuals from physicians to scientists to journalists to patients, and clarity of the information is crucial to ensuring that informed decision making takes place. Furthermore, because cancer is both a leading cause of death and preventable with change in several behavioral risk factors (such as smoking), communication about cancer risk to the general public is of considerable importance. This entry discusses types of cancer prevention activities for which effective risk communication is essential, theories about the perception of health risks, communication between doctors and patients (particularly the exchange of information, discussion of risks and benefits of cancer screening, and shared decision making), and factors affecting the efficacy of health communication about risk.