title: An Innovative Website in the United States for Meeting the Emotional and Supportive Care Needs of Young Adults with Cancer.
abstract: This paper describes the development of an institution-specific website designed to meet the supportive and emotional needs of young adults (18-39 years old) with cancer in the United States. The website contains information about topics of particular interest to young adults, coping skills education, and resources; and has social networking capacity. In a survey of website users, participants reported increased "connectedness" and variable impact on feelings of sadness, fear, and worry. Recommendations are made for fostering peer interactions, encouraging staff to educate website users around self-monitoring for distress, and incorporating relevant content on the website.
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute , Boston, Massachusetts.|2 Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital , Boston, Massachusetts.|3 Harvard Medical School , Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Karen M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Fasciano
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute , Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Phoebe M
authors.initials: PM
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.affiliation: 1 Department of Psychosocial Oncology and Palliative Care, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute , Boston, Massachusetts.|2 Department of Psychiatry, Brigham and Women's Hospital , Boston, Massachusetts.|3 Harvard Medical School , Boston, Massachusetts.
authors.forename: Ilana
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Braun
authors.affiliation: 4 Department of Medicine, Weill Cornell Medical College , New York, New York.
authors.forename: Kelly
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Trevino
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D000293:Adolescent; D000328:Adult; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007255:Information Services; D020407:Internet; D008297:Male; D020380:Needs Assessment; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D010166:Palliative Care; D060756:Social Networking; D012944:Social Support; D055815:Young Adult
keywords: information; mental health; peer support; social networking; supportive care; technology