Table 5.
Risk communication formats used by Internet-based cancer risk assessment tools to communicate individualized risk estimates (N = 47)
| Risk Communication Format | Example | n | % | |
| Words or numbers | ||||
| Words only | Your risk is low. | 24 | 51.1 | |
| Numbers only | Your risk is 2%. | 16 | 34.0 | |
| Botha | Your risk is 2%. This is a low risk. | 5 | 10.6 | |
| Neither | You may only need to continue screening. | 2 | 4.3 | |
| Type of numeric informationb, c | ||||
| Percent | Your risk is 2%. | 17 | 81.0 | |
| Frequency (n in 1000) | Your risk is 20 in 1000. | 6 | 28.6 | |
| Frequency (1 in N) | Your risk is 10 in 500. | 4 | 19.1 | |
| Relative risk ratio | Your risk is 2 times higher than average. | 2 | 9.5 | |
| Odds | Your odds of getting cancer are 2:98. | 1 | 4.8 | |
| Risk estimate as absolute or comparative information | ||||
| Absolute risk only | Your risk is low.” OR “Your risk is 2%. | 21 | 44.7 | |
| Comparative risk only | Your risk is higher than average. | 10 | 21.3 | |
| Absolute and comparative risk | Your risk is 2%. This is below average. OR Your risk is 2%. The average risk is 3%. | 14 | 29.8 | |
| Neither absolute nor comparative risk | You may only need to continue screening. | 2 | 4.3 | |
| Types of comparative risk information | ||||
| Compared to other people only (not hazards) | Your risk is higher than average. | 21 | 44.7 | |
| Compared to other people and hazards | Your risk of getting cancer is 12%, which is higher than average. The risk of being injured in a car accident is 10%. | 3 | 6.4 | |
| No comparison information | 23 | 48.9 | ||
| Contextual informationb | ||||
| Positive framing | Your risk is 2 in 100. This means your chances of not getting cancer are 98 in 100. | 3 | 6.4 | |
| Duration of risk | Your 5-year risk is... | 23 | 48.9 | |
| Safety messages | ||||
| At least one | Stop smoking | 39 | 83.0 | |
| None | 8 | 17.0 | ||
| Visual display | ||||
| At least one | Bar graph, line graph, table | 18 | 38.3 | |
| None | 29 | 61.7 | ||
| Acknowledgment of uncertainty: Estimate is...b | ||||
| only an estimate | Your actual risk might be different. | 14 | 29.8 | |
| probabilistic | High risk doesn’t mean you’ll get cancer. | 15 | 31.9 | |
| based on population | This estimate is based on data from large clinical trials. | 8 | 17.0 | |
| Any acknowledgment | 25 | 53.2 | ||
aIn general, the formats printed in italics are associated with increased comprehension and reduced bias of risk information. For comprehensive reviews see [21,22,24-27].
bThe individual elements within the categories type of numeric information, additional information, and acknowledgment of uncertainty were not mutually exclusive.
cThis category is restricted to the 21 websites that provided numeric risk information.