By Daniel Ghinn 
A few weeks ago, my colleague Ben Stott and I reviewed trends in healthcare professional (HCP) perspectives on lung cancer and its treatment, distilled from the online voices of oncologists and specialists worldwide. It was shortly before ASCO – the world’s biggest oncology medical congress, where much more online discussion took place about the latest science in this space – so the session provided a benchmark of HCP views before ASCO, as well as a forward-looking view on what they were anticipating for the future.
From billions of HCP social media posts over the past year, we identified and analysed over 100,000 that specifically focused on lung cancer. By tuning in to the voices of verified healthcare professionals, we captured what they were saying about lung cancer and its treatment.
Patterns and drivers of online engagement
Healthcare professionals maintain a steady level of online conversation about lung cancer, averaging between 1,500 and 2,000 posts per week. However, this baseline activity surges dramatically around major medical congresses, where new data and trial results are shared. These events consistently act as catalysts for heightened engagement. Notably, the conversation doesn’t end when the congress does; in the weeks that follow, HCPs continue to debate the implications of new findings, share perspectives on how the data applies in real-world settings, and shape clinical thinking in an ongoing digital peer-review process.
Key themes in HCP conversations
The lung cancer conversation among HCPs is firmly anchored in science, with nearly 40% of posts focused on research and data, including congress updates, clinical trials, and study results. Around 20% of the discussion centres on treatment, such as drug approvals and first-line regimen choices.
The conversation extends beyond the science, too: patient experiences, including individual cases and stories, sit at the heart of many posts, often surrounded by themes of diagnosis, screening, and prevention. This integration of clinical data with human context reflects a broader truth in oncology: while scientific exchange dominates, HCPs consistently bring the patient perspective into focus, with prevention and personal stories playing a vital role in shaping the narrative.
Science, information sharing and education
Healthcare professionals consistently seek and share credible, evidence-based resources when discussing lung cancer online. Peer-reviewed journals, clinical trial papers, and high-quality publications, such as The New England Journal of Medicine, are widely referenced. Community-driven sources, such as the OncoAlert newsletter and congress abstract lists, are valued for their timely updates. YouTube also plays a role, serving as a platform for explainer videos and peer-to-peer education. Across all formats, the most engaging content is timely, scientifically robust, and easy to share, enabling fast, informed discussion within the HCP community.
Most-discussed trials in the past year
Among all lung cancer clinical trials discussed by healthcare professionals over the past 12 months, two stood out by far: AstraZeneca’s LAURA trial and Johnson & Johnson’s MARIPOSA trial. These trials generated the highest volume of HCP social media engagement, far exceeding that of others, such as ADRIATIC, FLAURA2, and COCOON. LAURA, which investigated the use of osimertinib as a consolidation therapy in patients with unresectable, stage III EGFR-mutated NSCLC following chemoradiotherapy, was unveiled at ASCO 2024 and continued to dominate the conversation throughout the year. It was widely praised, described as “practice changing,” a “new SoC,” and having “passed the truck test” by multiple oncologists. At the same time, critical voices emerged: some questioned the trial’s patient selection criteria, use of MRD, and the lack of overall survival data. The response was both practical and clinical. Calls for urgent policy action, such as “We need this in the UK ASAP,” highlighted how scientific findings were directly tied to access and implementation concerns.
As 2025 began, attention shifted to the MARIPOSA trial, which brought the amivantamab + lazertinib combination into the spotlight and directly challenged osimertinib’s position as standard of care. One oncologist declared “Osimertinib BEATEN!!” as HCPs reacted to the trial’s improved overall survival and encouraging 3-year OS rates. The excitement was balanced by caution: concerns about toxicity quickly surfaced, with several HCPs questioning whether the benefit justified the added burden for patients. The data also sparked deeper debate over optimal first-line treatment strategies, with HCPs weighing monotherapy versus combination regimens, particularly comparing MARIPOSA with FLAURA2. Together, the LAURA and MARIPOSA trials not only drove the most engagement but also revealed the depth of peer critique, anticipation, and practical reflection that defines today’s online scientific exchange among oncology professionals.
Congress behaviour and guideline impact
The online conversation also revealed how HCPs prepare for congress. In the lead-up to major events like ASCO, online anticipation builds as healthcare professionals share abstracts, spotlight key sessions, and speculate on data expected to be “practice-changing.” Influential voices, such as Dr. Stephen Liu, actively shape this pre-congress dialogue, using social media to preview sessions and raise awareness among their peers.
Following the events, HCPs quickly pivot from preview to peer review, interpreting and debating trial results in real time. This commentary often extends beyond the data itself to include reflections on study design, clinical application, and unmet needs. The ripple effect is swift: results from the LAURA trial were incorporated into the NCCN guidelines less than two weeks after ASCO 2024, a move that HCPs noted and discussed online with enthusiasm and, in some cases, urgency regarding access. Likewise, the MARIPOSA trial results prompted visible updates to the ASCO Living Guidelines within a month. These rapid changes triggered another wave of commentary from clinicians, who celebrated progress while continuing to raise thoughtful questions about patient selection, toxicity trade-offs, and real-world implications.
Listening to shape strategy
The online voice of healthcare professionals offers far more than passive observation; it’s an active, unfiltered window into the evolving scientific mindset, clinical concerns, and emotional drivers behind treatment decisions. For medical and commercial teams, this presents a strategic opportunity: to listen in real time, understand what matters to HCPs, and tailor engagement accordingly. The prominence of trials like LAURA and MARIPOSA in HCP conversation, and the speed with which they sparked debate and influenced guidelines, underscores the need for agility in message development, field team briefing, and content planning. Moreover, the interplay of scientific commentary with patient-focused advocacy and access concerns highlights the importance of aligning communications not only with data but with the values and unmet needs of the clinical community. In this environment, companies that combine data intelligence with empathetic engagement will be best positioned to build credibility, shape perception, and support the successful adoption of innovations in care.
Anticipation for ASCO 2025
Even before the first presentations were delivered, healthcare professionals were actively shaping the ASCO 2025 narrative. Key opinion leaders were already sharing abstracts and spotlighting upcoming sessions, with notable excitement around neoadjuvant and adjuvant studies such as NeoADAURA and CheckMate. Some are using terms like “practice changing” before the data has even been presented, which is a testament to the weight of expectation. Through high-reach posts, influential HCPs are not only amplifying interest but also setting the tone for how new evidence will be received.
Unmet needs and patient-centred care
While much of the lung cancer conversation focuses on treatment and clinical data, over 5 per cent centres on prevention and screening, highlighting a persistent unmet need among healthcare professionals. Clinicians are leading grassroots awareness efforts, often using hashtags such as #LungCancerScreening and #ScreeningSavesLives to advocate for earlier detection and increased awareness among both patients and their peers. These topics present a meaningful opportunity for pharmaceutical companies to engage beyond the pill. Although direct responses to treatment discussions are often limited by regulation, industry can contribute to public education and non-promotional initiatives. Examples include Dr. Rice’s collaboration with Merck on screening awareness and Amgen’s “Mission Week” campaign.
Physician-led advocacy campaigns are also gaining traction, with notable examples like the “#HearHer” initiative led by Dr. Narjust Florez, one of the most influential Digital Opinion Leaders in the lung cancer space. Her campaign, which addresses gender disparities in diagnosis, generated over 300 mentions on X, with further amplification on platforms like Bluesky. Dr. Florez is mentioned by peers nearly 3,000 times per year in lung-cancer conversations, and sees her lung cancer-related content reshared around 1.5 times per day. Her influence spans treatment, patient experience, prevention, policy, and advocacy, with clear peaks around major congresses. This kind of impact underscores the value of a data-driven DOL strategy. At CREATION.co, we have spent more than a decade refining a methodology to identify, understand, and meaningfully engage these influential voices, enabling partnerships that resonate deeply with the clinical community.
Strategic recommendations for pharma
To stay aligned with the rapidly evolving oncology landscape, pharmaceutical companies and other healthcare stakeholders should actively leverage timely insights from HCPs on social media. These platforms now serve as a form of living peer review, where clinical consensus, dissent, and nuanced debate are openly discussed. By monitoring these conversations, teams can prepare for likely questions, interpret emerging concerns, and tailor field and medical strategies to align with the current mindset of practising clinicians.
Engagement should begin with a clear understanding of influence. Mapping Digital Opinion Leaders (DOLs) provides a powerful foundation for advisory boards, speaker identification, and meaningful partnership strategies. Outreach and content planning should focus on topics that reflect shared priorities, such as early detection, patient education, and systemic barriers to care. In this space, participation in relevant hashtags and non-promotional campaigns can enhance visibility and trust, especially when done in collaboration with respected HCP voices.
Most importantly, empathy must remain at the centre. HCPs consistently demonstrate a deep commitment to improving patient outcomes, often advocating passionately for issues like access, screening, and disparities in care. Engaging with that motivation, not just through clinical data, but through shared purpose, is essential for building authentic, long-term relationships that can drive impact for patients as well as industry goals.
How to catch up
You can still watch what we presented in the lung cancer webinar ahead of ASCO, or, if you’d like an update on what the most impactful online HCPs were discussing across oncology indications during ASCO, you can also watch the CREATION ASCO Debrief webinar. If you’re in lung cancer, you might prefer a more personalised deep dive into the voices of impactful HCPs before, during, or since ASCO, to learn what matters to physicians and how they reacted to your data, as well as other emerging science in lung cancer. Get in touch, and we’ll help you understand the HCP voice and what it means for your product. We’ll also help you create a plan to act on those insights.
About CREATION.co
CREATION.co is an insights consultancy for the health and scientific industries. We work with pharmaceutical leaders in medical affairs or commercial roles when they are planning a product launch and need timely customer intelligence that they’re not getting from traditional sources.
Thanks to our proprietary technology, CREATION Pinpoint, we distil the online voice of HCPs from the noise on social media and analyse that voice to identify new intelligence about HCP needs and views. We also identify which HCPs are having the most significant online impact on the views of their peers, the Digital Opinion Leaders. Then, through our workshops and consulting, we help our clients develop an action plan to improve their launch and measure the impact of that plan.
If this sounds like you, we’d love to help.
