With the support of leading health consumer organisations Lymphoma Australia and the Leukaemia Foundation, Roche Products is pioneering the provision of health information through the launch of an innovative online, pilot cancer awareness program. R.I.S.E. U.P. (Roche Integrated Support Entourage Unique & Personal) is the first dedicated lymphoma awareness centre to be launched in Second Life®, one of the most popular virtual worlds accessed in Australia.
For many people, receiving a lymphoma diagnosis is frightening and overwhelming simply because they have never heard of the disease.1 New statistics released by Lymphoma Australia reveal that one in five Australians do not know what lymphoma is and less than 20% can name at least one common symptom.2
Furthermore, nine out of ten people don’t realise exactly how common lymphoma is within the population, even though more than4, 000 Aussies are diagnosed with the cancer each year.3Lymphoma is already the most common blood cancer in Australia and cases are increasing, 4 yet early detection of the signs and symptoms can make a significant difference in overall survival rates.5
R.I.S.E. U.P. has been launched to fill this major lymphoma ‘knowledge gap’ amongst the Australian general public. R.I.S.E. U.P. is based in a virtual education centre where ambassadors engage with visitors online. People can access information on lymphoma and presentations by leading Australian cancer doctors.
Visitors can travel around ‘Node Man’ – a giant replica of the human body showing where lymphoma can originate – the largest structure of its kind built on Second Life® to-date, designed to educate people on the common signs and symptoms. R.I.S.E. U.P. is also a place to talk with other people about lymphoma.
Professor Jeffrey Szer, Clinical Haematologist at the Royal Melbourne and Western Hospitals, is holding two presentations about lymphoma on R.I.S.E. U.P. in the coming weeks; “I’m very excited about being involved in one of the first virtual heath education centres and I think R.I.S.E. U.P. is a real innovation.
Virtual worlds provide people with a secure, anonymous environment through which to access information. Whilst this channel will never replace the interaction with a healthcare professional, it is a real step forward in communicating serious health messages to the general public in an era where ‘social media’ is dominating.”
Australians are increasingly going online to search for health information. After consulting with their doctor, the internet is the most popular source of health information6 and ‘cancer’ is the second most Googled health condition (after pregnancy), generating around 7.7 million search queries each month.7 Virtual worlds are commonly thought of as places for people to interact, socialise and express themselves.
Yet the use of these online communities is now evolving to communicate the more serious side of life.
There is misinformation on the internet and it is increasingly important for accurate information to be available – especially in online communities in which patients and carers may already be active.
“Unlike breast, bowel and skin cancer, most people have never heard of lymphoma. Yet it’s the most common blood cancer in Australia, affecting almost 4,500 people each year. If the signs and symptoms of lymphoma are detected early, there is a better chance for quicker diagnosis and the commencement of effective and often curative treatment,” Professor Szer continued.
2 R.I.S.E. U.P. can be accessed through Second Life® at: http://slurl.com/secondlife/This%20Second/37/182/22. Visitors to R.I.S.E. U.P. can remain anonymous. About the Lymphoma Australia research: 2 (Market Research courtesy of Research Now)
The research was carried out amongst 1,211 Australians in August 2009
Findings include:
One in five Australians (20%) do not know what lymphoma is and of the people who know it is a cancer, a third (33%) are unable to define what type of cancer
More Australians are diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma than Hodgkin lymphoma, yet only one in ten (9%) know the difference between these two cancers
Nine out of ten people (89%) don’t realise how exactly how common lymphoma is within the general population
Less than 20% of people are able to list at least one common symptom of lymphoma
