Social networks as a means of obtaining information about oncological diseases

In the modern world, saturated with information technologies and resources, their quality, reliability, and usefulness for the audience begin to play a special role. Today, every citizen with Internet access has the opportunity to study medical information of interest. But search queries can be not only informational in nature, for example, about the name and qualifications of a specialist, about the location of a medical organization, and so on. Citizens often request information directly to make a diagnosis, including «on Google», for self-medication, prescribing medications, etc. The scale of penetration of social networks into the life of population makes it possible to comment on the diagnosis, communicate in forums on diseases of interest, including cancer, as well as on issues of their prevention. Of course, one of the priority areas of the national project «Healthcare», adopted following the meeting of the Presidium of the Council under the President of the Russian Federation for Strategic Development and National Projects on December 24, 2018, is to reduce mortality rates from neoplasms, including malignant ones (up to 185 cases per 100 thousand population), and to achieve this goal, methods are also being developed to further inform the population about cancer and measures to prevent it. It is also necessary to take into account that the correct use of the information received by citizens depends on the reliability of medical information; therefore, it is an important and integral condition for preserving and strengthening the health of the population. The article presents the results of using the author’s methodology for the automated process of collecting and systematizing data from search queries in social networks of residents of the Republic of Tatarstan when studying information needs on the topic of oncology. It was found out that expert information only partially satisfies the information needs of the population on the topic of oncology, thus, the hypothesis put forward before the start of the study was confirmed.