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Brain Tumor Discussions on Twitter (#BTSM): Social Network Analysis
Josemari T Feliciano1, Liz Salmi2, Charlie Blotner3
1Department of Biostatistics, Yale University School of Public Health, New Haven, CT, United States.
Journal of Medical Internet Research
|October 8, 2020
Summary
The Brain Tumor Social Media hashtag (#BTSM) has grown significantly since 2012, becoming a vital online support system. This platform connects patients, advocates, and researchers, fostering information exchange for brain tumor communities.
Area of Science:
- Social Media Analysis
- Digital Health
- Patient Advocacy
Background:
- The Brain Tumor Social Media (#BTSM) hashtag was established on Twitter in February 2012.
- It serves as a dedicated platform for individuals affected by brain tumors.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate the role of #BTSM as a patient support system.
- To analyze user demographics, platform growth, interaction patterns, and content sharing.
Main Methods:
- Analysis of all #BTSM tweets from 2012 to 2018 using Symplur Signals.
- Description of user categories, content, and usage trends.
- Network analysis of 2018 retweets to identify key stakeholders.
Main Results:
- Over 59,764 unique users generated 298,904 tweets between 2012 and 2018.
- Annual tweet volume increased by 264.57%, with #BTSM consistently trending.
- Patient advocates were the primary users, followed by advocacy groups, caregivers, doctors, and researchers.
Conclusions:
- #BTSM has demonstrated exponential growth since its inception.
- The hashtag shows potential as a global resource for brain tumor information.
- It effectively connects patients, advocates, organizations, healthcare professionals, and researchers.
