Abstract
BACKGROUND: The public perception of cancer is often influenced through news stories on public figures diagnosed with cancer. However, most stories lack granular details on cancer type, treatment, and prognosis, which may create more doubt rather than clarity for readers. We sought to understand how news stories portray cancer in public figures. MATERIALS AND METHODS: News stories with a cancer headline that were published between 1 January 2010 and 1 January 2020 were identified using Google News. RESULTS: We identified 4135 news articles with a cancer headline published between 2010 and 2020, of which 254 articles specifically discussed a public figure with cancer. Many articles did not specify the type of cancer, prognosis, or staging. When a public figure's prognosis was specified, the individual was described as already deceased or portrayed as being incurable or having a poor prognosis. Many news articles did not specify the type of cancer therapy that an individual received or was expected to receive. CONCLUSION: News articles describing cancer in a public figure between 2010 and 2020 often did not specify the cancer type, prognosis, or treatment. Most news articles did not contain any educational information on the cancer described in the article. The public should be cognizant that news articles about high-profile individuals with cancer often contain a noteworthy lack of details about cancer.