Developing a Peer-to-Peer mHealth Application to Connect Hispanic Cancer Patients

Purpose: Cancer and its treatment can significantly impact health-related quality of life (HRQOL) [29, 4], particularly for Hispanics [8, 17]. Moreover, providers of cancer support for this population may encounter unique challenges. Grounded in social capital theory, this study identified Spanish-speaking, Hispanic breast cancer survivor support needs and preferences for a mHealth intervention. Methods: A user-centered, community-engaged research design was employed, consisting of focus groups made up of constituents from a local Hispanic-serving, cancer support organization. Focus group audio-recordings, translated into English, were coded using a grounded theory analytic approach. First, lead researchers read the complete transcripts to obtain a general sense of the discussion. Next, coding rules were established (e.g., code at the most granular level; double and triple code if necessary, code exhaustively) and initial codebook was created through open-coding. Three new coders were trained to establish requisite kappa statistic levels (≥.70) for inter-rater reliability. With training and discussion, kappa estimates reached .81-.88. Results: Focus group (n=31) results revealed a mHealth intervention targeting Hispanic cancer patients should not only offer information and support on disease/treatment effects, but also respond to the individual’s HRQOL, particularly emotional and social challenges. Specifically, participants expressed a strong desire for Spanish content and to connect with others who had gone through a similar experience. Overall, participants indicated they would have access to and would use such an intervention. Conclusions: Findings indicate positive support for a mHealth, tool, which is culturally tailored to Spanish-speakers, is available in Spanish, and connects cancer patients with survivors

Study Design and Protocol for My Guide: An e-Health Intervention to Improve Patient-Centered Outcomes Among Hispanic Breast Cancer Survivors

Breast cancer is the most commonly diagnosed non-skin cancer in women and the leading cause of death among Hispanic women living in the United States. Relative to non-Hispanic white women, Hispanic women report poorer health related quality of life (HRQoL) after treatment. Although eHealth interventions delivered via Smartphones are a viable approach to addressing supportive care accessibility issues while also integrating multidisciplinary approaches for improving HRQoL, few eHealth interventions have been developed that specifically target Hispanic breast cancer survivors (BCS). This manuscript describes the methodology of a multisite, randomized controlled behavioral trial investigating the feasibility and preliminary efficacy of a Smartphone application aimed at improving HRQoL and cancer-specific distress among Hispanic BCS. Participants will be randomized to receive the intervention application, My Guide (psychoeducation & self-management program), or the health education control condition application, My Health (health education), for six weeks. All participants will also receive weekly telecoaching to enhance adherence to both control and intervention conditions. We will measure the study’s primary outcomes, general and disease-specific HRQoL and cancer-specific distress, at three time points: prior to, immediately after the intervention, and eight weeks after initial application use. My Guide may have the potential to improve HRQoL, and to address issues of limited access to supportive care among Hispanic women recovering from breast cancer treatment

Feasibility of a Smartphone-based pilot intervention for Hispanic breast cancer survivors: A brief report

Hispanic breast cancer survivors (BCS) are at high risk for experiencing poor health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after completion of active breast cancer treatment. Therefore, there is a need to develop culturally tailored interventions for Hispanic BCS. To date, there have been limited interventions that have demonstrated that increasing cancer-related knowledge, self-efficacy in communication, and self-management skills can improve HRQoL among Hispanic BCS. These interventions have been delivered in person or by phone, which may be burdensome for Hispanic BCS. To facilitate intervention delivery, we developed My Guide, a Smartphone application aimed at improving HRQoL among Hispanic BCS. The purpose of the current study is to describe the feasibility results of a 4-week pilot trial testing My Guide among Hispanic BCS. Twenty-five women enrolled in the study (75% recruitment rate) and 22 women were retained (91.6% retention rate). Mean time spent using My Guide across the 4 weeks was 9.25 hr, and mean score on the satisfaction survey was 65.91 (range 42-70), in which higher scores reflect greater satisfaction. Participants\u27 scores on the Breast Cancer Knowledge Questionnaire significantly improved from study baseline (M = 9.50, SD = 2.92) to the postintervention assessment (M = 11.14, SD = 2.66), d = 0.59. Participants\u27 HRQoL scores improved over the course of 4 weeks, but these improvements were not statistically significant. Overall, My Guide was feasible and acceptable. Future studies will assess the preliminary efficacy of My Guide in improving HRQoL in a larger, randomized trial of Hispanic BCS

Feasibility of a Smartphone-Based Pilot Intervention for Hispanic Breast Cancer Survivors: A Brief Report

Hispanic breast cancer survivors (BCS) are at high risk for experiencing poor health-related quality of life (HRQoL) after completion of active breast cancer treatment. Therefore, there is a need to develop culturally tailored interventions for Hispanic BCS. To date, there have been limited interventions that have demonstrated that increasing cancer-related knowledge, self-efficacy in communication, and self-management skills can improve HRQoL among Hispanic BCS. These interventions have been delivered in person or by phone, which may be burdensome for Hispanic BCS. To facilitate intervention delivery, we developed My Guide, a Smartphone application aimed at improving HRQoL among Hispanic BCS. The purpose of the current study is to describe the feasibility results of a 4-week pilot trial testing My Guide among Hispanic BCS. Twenty-five women enrolled in the study (75% recruitment rate) and 22 women were retained (91.6% retention rate). Mean time spent using My Guide across the 4 weeks was 9.25 hr, and mean score on the satisfaction survey was 65.91 (range 42–70), in which higher scores reflect greater satisfaction. Participants’ scores on the Breast Cancer Knowledge Questionnaire significantly improved from study baseline (M = 9.50, SD = 2.92) to the postintervention assessment (M = 11.14, SD = 2.66), d = 0.59. Participants’ HRQoL scores improved over the course of 4 weeks, but these improvements were not statistically significant. Overall, My Guide was feasible and acceptable. Future studies will assess the preliminary efficacy of My Guide in improving HRQoL in a larger, randomized trial of Hispanic BCS