Cancer Treatment Using Herbals in Arabic Social Media: Content Analysis of YouTube Videos

YouTube is a very common video sharing platform in the cyberspace. It has been emerged as a popular tool for general information in health sector. The purpose of this study was to analyze the YouTube videos of Arabic content related to using herbals for cancer treatment. The result contained 75 videos that were viewed a total of 4,770,491 times. The analyzed videos presented more than 107 different herbals and natural plants as sources of treatment for cancer. The study found that the purpose of most videos (96%) was provided by individuals without any professional connection or scientific evidence. The content analysis raised huge concerns about the accuracy, safety monitoring and exploiting the patients' needs in YouTube messages for using herbals in cancer treatment. The study recommended that YouTube should follow the downloaded videos and establish a clear governance framework such as national health authorities and control agencies due to the high risk that can be produced by the misleading and invalid information that may harm the patients.