[Facebook in oncology. Review of the literature]

Internet and particularly the so-called Web 2.0 are powerful tools of communication characterized by high user participation in the creation of content through various sites, such as those of social networking, where Facebook is the best known and most widely used. The aim of the present paper is to review the literature on the use of Facebook in health care. The international scientific literature of the past 10 years has been collected by major databases online. From the research were identified 262 articles of which 57 are considered relevant. The articles are schematically divided into three categories according to the topic: use of Facebook for psychosocial support for communication, for doctor-patient relationship, for institutional communication. The authors have identified the critical aspects and the possibility of using this tool in the communication and relationship between patients and health professionals. Despite the presence of critical issues, the use of social media is to be considered with interest and is worthy of study and research in the clinical setting. It should at the same time that health professionals are aware of the risks associated with the use of social networking but also trained in the use of the potential of these virtual tools that cannot replace real interactions but can support them.