What Does Cancer Treatment Look Like in Consumer Cancer Magazines? An Exploratory Analysis of Photographic Content in Consumer Cancer Magazines

• Published in: Journal of health communication Vol. 16; no. 4; pp. 416 - 430
• Main Authors: Phillips, Selene G., Della, Lindsay J., Sohn, Steve H.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Philadelphia, PA Taylor & Francis Group 01.04.2011; Taylor & Francis; Taylor & Francis Ltd
• Subjects: Adolescent; Adult; Age Factors; Aged; Aged, 80 and over; Biological and medical sciences; Body Image; Cancer; Communication; Consumer Health Information; Ethnic Groups - statistics & numerical data; Ethnicity; Female; Gender; Health care; Health technology assessment; Humans; Male; Media; Medical diagnosis; Medical sciences; Medical treatment; Middle Aged; Miscellaneous; Neoplasms - diagnosis; Neoplasms - ethnology; Neoplasms - therapy; Patients; Periodicals as Topic; Photography - statistics & numerical data; Public health. Hygiene; Public health. Hygiene-occupational medicine; Race; Risk assessment; Sex Factors; Social identity; Young Adult; United States > US; Human; Newspaper; Treatment; Consumer; Content; Mass media; Malignant tumor; Public health; Cancer; Communication
• ISSN: 1081-0730; 1087-0415
• DOI: 10.1080/10810730.2010.546484

In an exploratory analysis of several highly circulated consumer cancer magazines, the authors evaluated congruency between visual images of cancer patients and target audience risk profile. The authors assessed 413 images of cancer patients/potential patients for demographic variables such as age, gender, and ethnicity/race. They compared this profile with actual risk statistics. The images in the magazines are considerably younger, more female, and more White than what is indicated by U.S. cancer risk statistics. The authors also assessed images for visual signs of cancer testing/diagnosis and treatment. Few individuals show obvious signs of cancer treatment (e.g., head scarves, skin/nail abnormalities, thin body types). Most images feature healthier looking people, some actively engaged in construction work, bicycling, and yoga. In contrast, a scan of the editorial content showed that nearly two thirds of the articles focus on treatment issues. To explicate the implications of this imagery-text discontinuity on readers' attention and cognitive processing, the authors used constructs from information processing and social identity theories. On the basis of these models/theories, the authors provide recommendations for consumer cancer magazines, suggesting that the imagery be adjusted to reflect cancer diagnosis realities for enhanced message attention and comprehension.