SFViz: interest-based friends exploration and recommendation in social networks
Proceedings of the 2011 Visual Information Communication - International Symposium
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People with cancer have to contend with a variety of physical, emotional and social difficulties. Young people with cancer are often faced with the additional burden of isolation from their peers and social network. This paper outlines early results from a collaborative project seeking to use emerging technologies to develop and evaluate a peer-based social support system to support social connectivity amongst young people with cancer. We introduce an integrated service named MyTrac, which combines online social network applications and mobile broadband telephony. Seven young people (18--25yo) participated in the three month study. The study encompassed in-depth interview data, questionnaire data and an analysis of system audit logs, which documents participants' use and experience of the system. In this paper we highlight specific communications mediated by MyTrac, showing how they are a reflection of both the individual personalities of participants and a reflection of their cancer journey. We illustrate how these individual identities construct a collaborative identity for MyTrac, one which both encompasses and excludes particular types of interaction. We conclude by articulating some design considerations for social connectivity systems which seek to support young people with cancer.