Patients' Experiences of Care With or Without the Support of an Interactive App During Neoadjuvant Chemotherapy for Breast Cancer: Interview Study.
Maria Fjell, Ann Langius-Eklöf, Marie Nilsson and 1 others
PMID 35969443WHAT IT FOUND
Patients said care during chemotherapy before surgery was mostly good with or without the app.
App users said it added value by giving symptom advice, quick nurse contact, and helping them track symptoms and feel monitored.
Key findings
01Both app and standard-care patients reported positive and negative experiences of care, with few differences between groups.
02App users described the app as an accessible source of symptom information and self-care advice that complemented nurse information.
03App users said the app made them feel monitored and helped them plan activities.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
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What it does not show
Interviews were done 3 months after treatment ended, so recall may affect what patients reported. The study describes experiences, not measured clinical outcomes or app effects. Participants were Swedish-speaking patients with nonmetastatic breast cancer without cognitive dysfunction, treated at two Stockholm hospitals, so findings may not transfer. Both groups had mostly positive experiences, so the app's added value is based on app users' descriptions rather than a comparison of measured effects.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude the app improves symptoms or care outcomes. This study reports how 40 patients experienced care; it did not measure treatment effects.