Objectives/hypothesis: The incidence of human papillomavirus-positive (HPV+) oropharyngeal cancer is rising, but public knowledge about this diagnosis remains low. This study aimed to investigate the quality and readability of online information about HPV+ oropharyngeal cancer.
Study design: Cross-sectional website analysis.
Methods: This study conducted a total of 12 web searches across Google, Yahoo, and Bing to identify websites related to HPV+ oropharyngeal cancer. The QUality Evaluation Scoring Tool (QUEST) was used to measure quality based on seven website criteria. The Flesch Reading Ease Score (FRES) and Flesch-Kincaid Grade Level (FKGL) were used to measure readability, with scores estimating the education level a reader would require to understand a piece of text. Readability improves as FRES increases and FKGL decreases.
Results: Twenty-seven unique web pages were evaluated. The mean USA reading grade level as measured by FKGL was 10.42 (standard deviation = 1.54). There was an inverse relationship between quality and readability, with a significant positive correlation between QUEST score and FKGL (r = 0.343, P = .040) and a significant negative correlation between QUEST score and FRES (r = -0.537, P = .002).
Conclusions: With a mean USA reading grade level more than four grades above the American Medical Association's recommendation and results indicating that readability suffers as quality improves, these findings suggest that the currently available online information about HPV+ oropharyngeal cancer is insufficient. Improved patient education practices and resources about this diagnosis are needed.
Level of evidence: NA Laryngoscope, 131:87-94, 2021.
Keywords: Oropharyngeal cancer; consumer health information; human papillomavirus; patient education; quality; readability.
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