Abstract:

Objective: This study aimed to compare the success of breast and prostate cancer awareness campaigns using the search rates on the internet as an indicator of the public’s interest in the subject. Materials and Methods: The periodic median search rates of the “breast cancer” and “prostate cancer” terms searched between January 2010 and December 2019 annually, 2010-2014 (first period), and 2015-2019 (second period) were compared over Google TrendsTM. The effect of the awareness campaigns and isolated rises (an increase of at least 25%) in the normal trend were evaluated. Results: It was observed that the median search rates for both cancer types increased in the second period (p<0.05). When trends were compared before and after the awareness months annually, an increase above the normal trend was detected for breast cancer (p<0.001). However, this increase was not observed in prostate cancer (p>0.05). Moreover, we found that the isolated rises for both types of cancer coincided with celebrity-related news covered in the media. Conclusion: Although breast cancer awareness was created in the society, it was determined that the situation was not the same for prostate cancer. More studies are needed to enlighten the public on prostate cancer, and Google TrendsTM may be an important tool that can assist the follow-up on this subject.

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