The Use Of Distributed Consensus Algorithms To Curtail The Spread Of Medical Misinformation

Medical misinformation (MEMI) occurs when individuals propagate health‐related claims as “medical fact,” without proper scientific verification that the content being “broadcasted” is indeed true.[1,2] Lack of rigorous scientific verification of medical information that is shared across a broad range of modern media platforms results in a potentially dangerous status quo.[3‐5] Implications of MEMI can be both serious and unpredictable.[6,7] The antifluoride and antivaccination movements provide examples of the consequences of the lack of appropriate built‐in safety mechanisms and scientific consensus (SCS) implementation processes at the level of media outlets, which subsequently led to the dangerous spread of fear‐based MEMI.[8‐14] From a definitional standpoint, SCS refers to an agreement among scientific community members about which scientific claims (e.g., statements proposing an explanation about an empirical phenomenon) constitute a scientific fact (a true, proven claim).[15] The authors of this editorial propose that the development of a distributed mechanism for medical SCS (MSCS) determination is urgently needed to help curb the escalating phenomenon of MEMI associated with the exponential growth of Internet‐based media platforms. Further, it is proposed that blockchain technology (BCT)‐based MSCS verification can be reasonably implemented and fill the much needed scientific consensus‐building gap. Moreover, this can be accomplished in a way that is constructive and nonoppressive from the standpoint of preserving scientific freedom, while at the same time reducing the potential for harm resulting from “unchecked” dissemination of MEMI across various contemporary media platforms.