In Rural America, Scarce Drs Battle Misinfo., Conspiracy As They Practice, Wyoming Oncologist: NPR

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'In rural America, scarce doctors battle misinformation as they practice medicine,' NPR, Oct. 15, 2025. - PHOTO Caption: Dr. Banu Symington, at her office in Rock Springs, Wyo., is one of just a few full-time oncologists practicing in the state.
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When Dr. Banu Symington first moved to Rock Springs, Wyo., 30 years ago, she appreciated its empty desert landscapes and small-town respect for physicians like herself. Fast-forward to today. Some of Symington's cancer patients curse at her for suggesting they vaccinate or wear masks to protect their weakened immune systems while undergoing chemotherapy.

"I actually had a patient's husband say, 'You only want me to mask because you're a liberal bitch.'"

Symington is among many doctors who say political attacks on science and medicine are affecting their relationships with patients, particularly in rural communities, where physician recruitment already poses a chronic challenge. Increasingly, misinformation and conspiracy theories about health fill a vacuum created by the lack of doctors, adding challenges to care. Meanwhile, the Trump administration's dramatic changes to health, science, public health and immigration policies are making recruitment of overseas talent tougher.

Conspiracy theories. In the sparsely populated mineral and coal mining towns that dot the area around Rock Springs, Symington says disinformation and political rage run rampant. At a recent county fair, for example, she stood for four hours offering free vials of sunscreen to passersby — but got no takers. One woman asked "Do you want to know why?" and then told Symington: "Doctors have been putting cancer-causing chemicals in sunscreen so we'll all get cancer and they'll enrich themselves."

Symington says such conspiracy theories and political divisiveness over health and science have worn away at the basic civilities that once made the community feel cohesive. "'You're a pharma whore,'" she's told. "They say it to my face." A lung cancer patient of Symington's refused vaccination, then died of COVID, still angrily believing the disease to be manufactured political fiction. Symington says until recent years, she'd been on friendly terms with that man, who always offered restaurant recommendations and suggestions for spots to rock hunt, which he knew was her hobby. His transformation is emblematic of a broader shift, she says...
https://www.npr.org/sections/shots-health-news/2025/10/15/nx-s1-5534324/rural-health-care-doctors-disinformation