A Breast Cancer Smartphone App to Navigate the Breast Cancer Journey: Mixed Methods Study.
breast cancer
breast cancer journey
breast cancer patient
decision-making process
empowerment
mobile app
smartphone app
Journal
JMIR formative research
ISSN: 2561-326X
Titre abrégé: JMIR Form Res
Pays: Canada
ID NLM: 101726394
Informations de publication
Date de publication:
10 May 2021
10 May 2021
Historique:
received:
10
03
2021
accepted:
12
04
2021
revised:
12
04
2021
entrez:
10
5
2021
pubmed:
11
5
2021
medline:
11
5
2021
Statut:
epublish
Résumé
Several mobile apps have been designed for patients with a diagnosis of cancer. Unfortunately, despite the promising potential and impressive spread, their effectiveness often remains unclear. Most mobile apps are developed without any medical professional involvement and quality evidence-based assessment. Furthermore, they are often implemented in clinical care before any research is performed to confirm usability, appreciation, and clinical benefits for patients. We aimed to develop a new smartphone app (Centro di Senologia della Svizzera Italiana [CSSI]) specifically designed by breast care specialists and patients together to help breast cancer patients better understand and organize their journey through the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. We describe the development of the app and present assessments to evaluate its feasibility, usefulness, and capability to improve patient empowerment. A mixed method study with brief longitudinal quantitative data collection and subsequent qualitative semistructured interviews was designed. Twenty breast cancer patients participated in the study (mean age 51 years, SD 10 years). The usability of the app, the user experience, and empowerment were measured after 1 month. The semistructured interviews measured the utility of the app and the necessary improvements. The app received good responses from the patients in terms of positive perception of the purpose of the app (7/20, 35%), organizing the cure path and being aware of the steps in cancer management (5/20, 25%), facilitating doctor-patient communication (4/20, 20%), and having detailed information about the resources offered by the hospital (2/20, 10%). Correlation and regression analyses showed that user experience increased the level of empowerment of patients (B=0.31, 95% CI 0.22-0.69; P=.009). The interviews suggested the need to constantly keep the app updated and to synchronize it with the hospital's electronic agenda, and carefully selecting the best time to offer the tool to final users was considered crucial. Despite the very small number of participants in this study, the findings demonstrate the potential of the app and support a fully powered trial to evaluate the empowering effect of the mobile health app. More data will be gathered with an improved version of the app in the second phase involving a larger study sample.
Sections du résumé
BACKGROUND
BACKGROUND
Several mobile apps have been designed for patients with a diagnosis of cancer. Unfortunately, despite the promising potential and impressive spread, their effectiveness often remains unclear. Most mobile apps are developed without any medical professional involvement and quality evidence-based assessment. Furthermore, they are often implemented in clinical care before any research is performed to confirm usability, appreciation, and clinical benefits for patients.
OBJECTIVE
OBJECTIVE
We aimed to develop a new smartphone app (Centro di Senologia della Svizzera Italiana [CSSI]) specifically designed by breast care specialists and patients together to help breast cancer patients better understand and organize their journey through the diagnosis and treatment of cancer. We describe the development of the app and present assessments to evaluate its feasibility, usefulness, and capability to improve patient empowerment.
METHODS
METHODS
A mixed method study with brief longitudinal quantitative data collection and subsequent qualitative semistructured interviews was designed. Twenty breast cancer patients participated in the study (mean age 51 years, SD 10 years). The usability of the app, the user experience, and empowerment were measured after 1 month. The semistructured interviews measured the utility of the app and the necessary improvements.
RESULTS
RESULTS
The app received good responses from the patients in terms of positive perception of the purpose of the app (7/20, 35%), organizing the cure path and being aware of the steps in cancer management (5/20, 25%), facilitating doctor-patient communication (4/20, 20%), and having detailed information about the resources offered by the hospital (2/20, 10%). Correlation and regression analyses showed that user experience increased the level of empowerment of patients (B=0.31, 95% CI 0.22-0.69; P=.009). The interviews suggested the need to constantly keep the app updated and to synchronize it with the hospital's electronic agenda, and carefully selecting the best time to offer the tool to final users was considered crucial.
CONCLUSIONS
CONCLUSIONS
Despite the very small number of participants in this study, the findings demonstrate the potential of the app and support a fully powered trial to evaluate the empowering effect of the mobile health app. More data will be gathered with an improved version of the app in the second phase involving a larger study sample.
Identifiants
pubmed: 33970120
pii: v5i5e28668
doi: 10.2196/28668
pmc: PMC8145088
doi:
Types de publication
Journal Article
Langues
eng
Pagination
e28668Subventions
Organisme : NCI NIH HHS
ID : P30 CA008748
Pays : United States
Informations de copyright
©Serena Petrocchi, Chiara Filipponi, Giacomo Montagna, Marta Bonollo, Olivia Pagani, Francesco Meani. Originally published in JMIR Formative Research (https://formative.jmir.org), 10.05.2021.
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