Table 1.

Study Characteristics.

Citation	Country	Aim	Study Design and Method	Sample and Sampling Strategy
Ziebland et al30	UK	To explore the extent people diagnosed with cancer used cancer information on the Internet	Qualitative interviews	n = 175 Cancer diagnosis: breast, bowel, cervix, prostate, and testes Mean age = 48.6
Helft et al26	USA	To evaluate Internet use by cancer patients to obtain cancer information	Structured face-to-face interviews with a quantitative survey	n = 200 Cancer patients Mean age = 57
Dickerson et al23	USA	To describe cancer patients’ experiences using the Internet for care	Qualitative analysis of interviews	n = 20 Cancer patients and survivors Mean age = 52.3
Im et al33	USA	To explore attitudes toward Internet cancer support groups	Qualitative analysis of data obtained from an online forum	n = 16 Cancer patients Mean age = 51.19
Sandaunet37	Norway	To examine nonparticipation and withdrawal from a breast cancer online self-help group	Qualitative interviews and participant observation	n = 25 Cancer diagnosis: breast
Im et al35	USA	To explore Asian Americans living with cancer views and participation on Internet cancer support groups	Qualitative analysis of data obtained from an online forum	n = 18 Asian Americans living with cancer Mean age = 39.89
Dickerson et al25	USA	To understand the experiences of using the Internet for men with cancer	Qualitative interviews	n = 15 Men with cancer Mean age = 63.3
Elwell et al31	USA	Explore types of social support teenagers with cancer seek out on computer support groups	Qualitative analysis of data obtained from an online forum	n = 151 Unique sender names of patients currently with or who previously had cancer
Bender et al24	Canada	Examining supportive care needs and Internet use as a source of support	Questionnaire—quantitative	n = 204 Testicular cancer survivors Mean age = 35.6
Rogers et al28	UK	To report Internet access and Internet use of survivors of head and neck cancer	Survey—quantitative	n = 482 Head and neck cancer survivors
Nguyen and Ingledew20	Canada	To evaluate Internet use by breast cancer patients	Questionnaire—quantitative	n = 56 Breast cancer patients
Yli-Uotila et al22	Finland	To describe the reasons, cancer patients seek support from the Internet	Online questionnaire with open-ended questions analyzed qualitatively	n = 74 Cancer patients Mean age = 53
Stephen et al34	Canada	To describe Internet experiences and understand its benefits	Qualitative interviews	n = 102 Cancer patients, survivors, and caregivers Mean age = 49
Valero-Aguilera et al21	Spain	To describe information needs of cancer patients	Questionnaire-based semistructured interviews—quantitative	n = 169 urological cancer patients n = 100 breast cancer patients Mean age = 48
Yli-Uotila et al29	Finland	To describe the social support patients with cancer receive from the Internet	Online questionnaire with open-ended questions analyzed qualitatively	n = 74 Cancer patients Mean age = 53
Ebel et al17	Germany	To evaluate the Internet usage and information needs of cancer patients	Questionnaire—quantitative	n = 255 Cancer patients Mean age = 63.5
Girault et al36	France	To understand the use of information technology for health	Questionnaire—quantitative	n = 1072 Mean age = 53
Lobchuk et al18	USA	To explore conversations of lung cancer patients in an online support group	Qualitative analysis of online blogs	n = 268 Cancer patients
Maloney et al27	USA	To identify the information needs and information use of breast cancer patients	Questionnaire—quantitative	n = 70 Breast cancer patients Mean age = 52.5
Moody et al19	UK	To explore the support needs of young adult cancer survivors	Mixed methods questionnaire—quantitative, qualitative focus groups, and interviews	Online survey n = 24; focus group and interview n = 7 Young adult cancer survivors Mean age = 21