I found the site to be dull and not particularly informative. It is primarily an online database for cancer statistics. It does, however, carry an online version of the bimonthly journal, Cancer Bulletin, published by the MD Anderson Cancer Center. This had a table of contents, brief synopses of several "conversations with physicians" and an editorial. It would be of no use to non-physicians or nonscientists and would be practically useless for physicians and scientists.
There are some interesting and useful topics at the site, however. For example, there is a published text of the Annual Research Report that contains searchable text. The reports are informative summaries of the ongoing research of each faculty member at MD Anderson, listed by department. Unfortunately, the most recent annual report found is for the 1992-1993 year.
The real strength of the MD Anderson site is the section on information for cancer patients. Perusal of the International Myeloma Foundationsite, which can be directly accessed from the MD Anderson Home Page, was fantastic. It contains email sites for patient-to-patient conversations, and online versions of a magazine for myeloma sufferers. It also contains a number of helpful pointers, including a glossary of medical terms and what patients can hope to obtain from treatment. You can even donate to the Foundation online or buy anything from a subscription to the magazine to an International Myeloma Foundation T-shirt. Also found at the MD Anderson Site is a direct link to CanSearch. This service was written by a 12-year survivor of colon cancer. It contains explanations about the online services available to cancer patients and their families with direct links to a number of the servers mentioned in this column. It is a great place to find information linking cancer sufferers to any number of specific organizations from breast cancer support groups to lung cancer support groups. As mentioned in last month's column, my favorite cancer-related site on the Web is the University of Pennsylvania OncoLink site. At that site there is a Cancer News section that lists direct links to Web site articles from a number of journals, magazines, and newspapers listed on a monthly basis. The Cancer News page also had summaries on a number of important, recent, cancer-related findings as well as links to searchable versions of the San Francisco Chronicle that allowed the reader to search for news articles on cancer or cancer-related topics.
One of my favorite pages on OncoLink is the Children's Gallery of Images, (a collection of drawings by pediatric oncology patients).
OncoLink also has several other selections which can be made from their home page. These include use statistics, several online journals, and meetings. The Journals Section includes links to the Journal of the National Cancer Institute that will be covered in some detail in a later column. Another online cancer journal, the Internet Cancer Journal, looks interesting but the medical information and articles published in it are relatively weak. I do not necessarily recommend this journal.
In addition, there was a What's New section on the OncoLink home page. This page included a listing of treatment trials for New Anticancer Drugs. As of July, 1995, there were over 120 ongoing clinical trials listed. Such information would be of use to clinical physicians interested in referring their patients into new drug trials, yet would also be of use to patients with cancer. All one has to do is find the specific cancer (say breast cancer) and look for a trial that is currently accepting patients. It should be noted that these trials are usually recommended for patients who have either failed therapy or are not candidates for currently accepted therapies; frequently, patients must meet specific criteria in order for them to be accepted into the trial. Most of these limitations will not be found on the Web listing.
A browser can also use the find commands to search for the cancer of interest (e.g., breast) to limit the search. The "What's New" section also had articles on new cancer breakthroughs, summaries of published articles and letters from readers. Probably the best way to use the OncoLink page, however, is to link to the Disease- Oriented Menus. This works by allowing the user to choose for example, pediatric cancer, then choose a particular pediatric cancer like retinoblastoma. From there, the reader can choose patient-oriented materials or more scientific materials from a list of many articles. I think most users will find this the easiest and most powerful way to use OncoLink. Its main limitation is infrequent updating, compared to other sections of OncoLink, so the most recent information on cancer cannot be found through the disease-oriented menu.
A series of informative topics for breast cancer patients is included in the Breast Cancer Information Clearinghouse. This site has links from its subject-oriented contents to sites that describe early detection of breast cancer (including breast self-exam and mammography) to information on treatments and ongoing basic research into breast cancer biology.
The following is a list of other useful Web sites you may wish to view:
The Cancer Guide (General Cancer Information, and Links to Essays and Books)
Handbook for Bone Marrow Transplant Recipients and Their Families