A review of mobile applications to help adolescent and young adult cancer patients

Abstract

ObjectiveTo review research articles utilizing mobile applications with adolescent and young adult (AYA) cancer patients.Materials and methodsWe identified articles via online searches and reference lists (eg, PsycInfo, PubMed). Articles were reviewed by two study team members for target population, stated purpose, technological utilization, sample size, demographic characteristics, and outcome data. Strengths and weaknesses of each study were described.ResultsOf 19 identified manuscripts, six met full inclusion criteria for this review (four smartphone applications and two tablet applications). One additional article that included an application not specific to oncology but included AYA patients with cancer within the target sample was also reviewed. Uses of these applications included symptom tracking, pain management, monitoring of eating habits following bone marrow transplant, monitoring of mucositis, and improving medication management. Utility results from pilot studies are presented.ConclusionMobile applications are growing in number and increasingly available to AYAs with and without chronic illness. These applications may prove useful in helping to support AYAs throughout their cancer treatment and beyond. However, few applications provide empirical data supporting their utility. Numerous strengths and benefits of these applications include increased accessibility to educational resources and self-management strategies, more frequent physical and emotional symptom tracking, and increased access to peer support. Despite these strengths, numerous limitations are identified, highlighting the need for future research in this area.

Evaluation of mobile phone applications to support medication adherence and symptom management in oncology patients

“…The following apps, described in the literature, were not available in either app store: Chemotherapy Assistant (CORA), Pain Squad+, Onco‐TreC, Eating After Transplant (EAT! ), Mobile Oncology Symptom Tracker (mOST), and CareZone Cancer . Pain Squad was the only app identified from the literature that was included in MARS scoring.…”

T2DM Self-Management via Smartphone Applications: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

“…There exist different types of smartphone applications regarding T2DM self-management, such as “Easy Diabetes”, “Diabetes Manager”, “myDiabetes” and so on[35]. Numerous characteristics of these apps including increased accessibility to educational resources and self-management strategies, more frequent physical and emotional symptom tracking, and increased access to peer support are all main strengths of them in benefiting self-management of individuls[36, 37]. However, there was no previous meta-analysis evaluating the impact of mHealth apps on glycemic control in T2DM patients.…”

Development of a text messaging system to improve receipt of survivorship care in adolescent and young adult survivors of childhood cancer

“…Although findings have indicated that the performance of these agents still need further improvement, Siri and Google Now will try to promptly communicate to its user of nearby medical facilities or emergency services if the user indicates that they are experiencing some type of physical pain or psychological distress [48]. In addition, as the mHealth field continues to develop, there are future research opportunities to improve the survivorship care of AYA survivors through the use of smartphone apps as this area continues to expand, including through the continued collaborative efforts of both the computer science mHealth and survivorship focused-health services research teams [49]. As technology advances, so do the opportunities to integrate the conversational portion of our SMS system into mobile applications without major user interface and experience changes.…”