This article has been reviewed according to Science X's editorial process and policies. Editors have highlighted the following attributes while ensuring the content's credibility: Brian Druker, M.D., has pretty much done it all as a pioneer in precision medicine. He developed a drug that turned chronic myeloid leukemia from a death sentence into a manageable condition; his discovery spurred the development of numerous similar life-saving precision therapies; and he is the animating force behind the Knight Cancer Institute's initiative at Oregon Health & Science University to end cancer as we know it.
So he was more than a little surprised when colleagues asked him why he was peddling ivermectin on social media. "I spent an entire career based on honesty and integrity," he said. "For someone to be able to usurp my identity—and undermine the trust people have in me—is really disturbing." His professional identity had been co-opted by a fake account on Facebook under the name "Brain Druker" pitching ivermectin to treat various forms of cancer.
Weeks before, a similar fake account popped up on X. The situation involving one of OHSU's highest-profile scientist-physicians represents a concerning development in an evolving information landscape now shaped by social media and misinformation. Navigating this environment is as challenging for health care professionals as it is for patients who are seeking answers and sometimes desperate for a ray of hope.
"We live in a post-truth era," said Fabrice Jotterand, Ph.D., director of the OHSU Center for Ethics in Health Care. "Everything is up for grabs. Your truth is not my truth." Yet medicine has always evolved with new technologies, each time meeting the moment.
In this new era, three OHSU experts who represent distinct fields of knowledge offer their advice about how to distinguish fact from fiction: a philosopher, a librarian and a physician who specializes in health literacy. Cliff Coleman, M.D., M.P.H., is a primary care physician who sees patients at OHSU's Richmond Clinic in southeast Portland. He's also a professor of family medicine in the OHSU School of Medicine who is a national expert in the fields of health literacy and doctor-patient communication.
As an expert who trains other health care professionals and medical students, Coleman understands the allure for people seeking help from readily available online resources. "Getting that positive message from an AI chatbot may satisfy your needs, whether it's the capital-T 'Truth' or not," he said. "It may meet your needs to get something that feels like the truth, as opposed to a real physician where you confront the messiness and stresses of a real conversation." The ease, convenience and reinforcement of preexisting values and beliefs make us especially susceptible to algorithms feeding us what we want to hear, he says.
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