These are the slides from my presentation on using Social Media to Interact with Patient and Colleagues. This was presented at the AACR Annual Meeting on Saturday, April 18, 2015 as part of the AACR's Professional Advancement Session on Social Media for Scientists: http://www.abstractsonline.com/plan/ViewSession.aspx?sKey=0d74c9e9-6886-4794-ab95-224bacc1d4d7&mKey={19573A54-AE8F-4E00-9C23-BD6D62268424}

1. Social Media for Interactions
with Patients and Colleagues
Emil Lou, MD, PhD
@cancerassassin1
University of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN
#AACR15
April 29, 2015

2. Current Position and Scientific Areas of Interest
• Physician-Scientist – Assistant Professor
• Lab-based researcher
• Intercellular communication in cancer
• Cancer Cell Biology
• Biomarkers of cancer chemoresistance
• Clinician
• Clinical practice in GI oncology and neuro-oncology
• For consistency, I use the same profile photo and username
(@cancerassassin1) across different forms of social media.

3. Forms of Social Media I use
• Twitter (@cancerassassin1)
• LinkedIn
• SlideShare
• ResearchGate
• Instagram
• For Videos: Vimeo, OncologyTube
• Others: TBD (eg Tumblr, Pinterest, Vine)
• My #SocialMedia “Hub”: my academic homepage (clinical and
research)

4. How I use these forms of Social Media to
interact with patients and colleagues
• Advocacy and Outreach (Patients and survivors)
• Promote events that benefit well-being and mutual support for cancer patients.
• e.g. AACR Scientist <-> Survivor Program (#AACR15SSP).
• Increase awareness of cancer screening and treatment.
• Advertise efforts by cancer organizations (local and national) that are raising funds for
cancer research.
• Clinical Oncology (Clinical colleagues)
• Connecting with social media-minded oncologists to ask about practices/issues in clinical
care at other institutions.
• Promotion of clinical trials; getting the word out to help accrual.
• Info for new patients coming to meet me in clinic.
• Cancer Research (Scientist Colleagues)
• Spreading awareness of interesting cancer research advances.
• Using social media to facilitate interactions with other researchers, between and during
conferences.

5. Interactions with patients, advocacy groups,
and individual advocates: A few examples
• CaringBridge.org
• Tips for Being a Great Patient Advocate (Dec 2014 interview on Blog)
• Advocacy Groups
• National – examples:
• PANCAN: attending local events, promoting them beforehand, participating and sharing the
event using social media in real time (Purple Stride Ride, Candle Lighting)
• Fight CRC – March 2015 Colon Cancer Awareness Month, #StrongArmSelfie online raised
money for colon cancer research
• Local/Regional (eg Minnesota Ovarian Cancer Alliance)
• March 2015 column in newsletter on research at the University of Minnesota
• Local funding agencies
• eg Mezin-Koats Colon Cancer Research Fund; Randy Shaver Community and
Cancer Research Fund

6. The Randy Shaver Cancer Research & Community Fund supports the cancer community in
Minnesota by funding research, prevention, treatment and other programs relating to the
Minnesota’s cancer community.
http://www.randyshavercancerfund.org/

7. The Randy Shaver Cancer Research &
Community Fund supports the cancer
community in Minnesota by funding
research, prevention, treatment and
other programs relating to the
Minnesota’s cancer community.
http://www.randyshavercancerfund.org/

8. From gutsandgrace.org: “The fight against colon cancer isn’t a solo journey. It
involves patients, family members, doctors and caregivers. Everyone has a story and
each one makes our community stronger. We’d love to hear from you. What’s your
story?”

9. #StrongArmSelfie for Fight Colorectal Cancer
(@FightCRC) to promote Colon Cancer Awareness
Month (March 2015)
Info from
FightColorectalCancer.org:
“A leading national patient
advocacy group for
colorectal cancer (the 2nd
leading cancer killer in the
US). We demand a cure.
1-877-427-2111”

10. Patients in clinic
• In this day and age, it is inevitable that patients turn not only to “Dr. Google” for
medical information, but also for information about their doctors.
• Why not make it easier for them?
• And use the opportunity to convey information to help ease anxiety for the visit,
and to help ensure logistics of the visit go well.
• Sample slides for my online “welcome packet” (link is found on my clinical
webpage)
• http://www.dom.umn.edu/hematology-oncology-and-transplantation/faculty/emil-
lou/index.htm
• “Care Philosophy
New Patients
If you are scheduled or interested in scheduling a clinic consultation with Dr.
Lou, click here for more information and a welcome from Dr. Lou.”

11. Dr. Emil Lou
Masonic Cancer Center
University of Minnesota:
Information for New Patients

12. Our clinic team
• Medical oncologist – Dr. Emil Lou
• Nurse care coordinator
• Physician Assistants (PA’s) and Nurse Practitioners (NP’s)
• Doctor of Pharmacy (Pharm.D)
• Registered Nurses (RN’s)
• Social workers
• Financial counselors
• Front desk clerks
• Clinic manager

13. Request an appointment online
• University of Minnesota Medical Center, Fairview appointment
request website
• https://sslforms.fairview.org/ummcclinicapt/ummcclinicapt.asp
• UMP Physicians Cancer Care website:
• http://www.umphysicians.org/Clinics/cancer-clinic/index.htm

14. Example of
using Twitter for
quick
conversation
with clinical
colleagues on
common issues
in oncology
Feb 11 2015

15. And previous screenshot is used with
permission…acquired in <1 hour via Twitter!

16. Why try #SocialMedia (#SoMe)?
• Amplify your message (research, clinical trials, interests)
• Fosters collaborations
• Makes introductions
• Much easier to “meet” leaders in the field (research or clinical) than making a cold
call or figuring out how to make introduction without background in person.
• *Not* a replacement for actual face-to-face or “regular” human social
interaction – rather, can help facilitate it!
• Common concern: “I don’t have time for it”; “It takes up too much time.”
• Synergy of efforts between formats
• Keep current on research from other labs, clinical advances, links to journal
articles and press releases, etc.

17. The public wants to know…
• Patients (and public in general) are intrigued by what researchers and
clinicians do – it can bring hope that someone is working diligently
(even in small steps) toward the goal of a cure.
• Growing demand that researchers need to “Come down from the
Ivory Tower,” and ideas that social media helps facilitate this in a
positive manner.
• Nice opinion piece by Laura Kuehne and Julian Olden, Univ of Washington,
PNAS 2015: “Lay summaries needed to enhance science communication.”
• The public wants to know what YOU are doing – because it can bring
HOPE. #cancerresearch

18. Examples
• At #AACR14, I used Twitter to promote my research poster.
• Brief interactions via Twitter or other forms (eg LinkedIn) led to awareness
of common research or other interests/backgrounds, facilitated
introductions at large meetings (including AACR or ASCO Annual Meetings).
• After attending AACR/ASCO Clinical Methods in Cancer Research Workshop
(Vail), I tweeted inquiry to Big Ten Cancer Research Consortium
(@BigTenCRC); immediate response and interest in clinical trial.
• Interactions with local/regional grant-funding agencies
• Fosters sense of teamwork, and they get to know the person/lab/researchers they
are funding.
• Increasing use of social media to increase awareness of – and enrollment in
– clinical trials.
• Biomarker trial in ovarian cancer at UMN

19. Summary
• Don’t be overwhelmed by the number of forms of social media – if
used correctly, they can/should be used synergistically.
• Approach depends on your interests, time, and what is needed (and
when) to achieve your goals.
• Fulfilling endeavor – perhaps for those who follow you, even more so
for yourself and what you will learn in return from interactions.
• Have fun with it.

20. Join me in conversation! @cancerassassin1
Lou Lab webpage: UMN.edu, search “Lou Lab”
Find me on:
 Twitter
 Instagram
 ResearchGate.net/profile/Emil_Lou
 SlideShare.net/cancerassassin1
 Vimeo.com/cancerassassin1
 Oncologytube.com/cancerassassin1
 Pinterest.com/cancerassassin1
 E-mail: emil-lou@umn.edu