Development of a Smartphone Program to Support Adherence to Oral Chemotherapy in People with Cancer

To describe the theoretical, evidence-based and consumer-informed development of a smartphone self-management program aiming to support adherence to oral chemotherapy in adolescents and adults diagnosed with cancer.

The design of the program followed two frameworks for the development and evaluation of mHealth interventions and was conducted in three steps: 1) conceptualization, which involved an extensive literature review and a scoping review that led to the identification of the behavioral change strategies in the program; 2) definition of features and structure, based on a formative study with end-users to explore their preferences about the structure and elements of the program; and 3) selection of program delivery technology, whereby available technology platforms were examined and the most suitable tool to deliver the program was selected.

Three main reasons for oral chemotherapy non-adherence were identified: forgetfulness, side-effects and poor knowledge about oral chemotherapy. Key behavior change strategies were also identified, namely, medication intake reminders and information about oral chemotherapy and managing side-effects. Based upon end-user feedback the method of delivery of these behavioral strategies that was deemed most appropriate was conventional text messages. The reminders were standard, short, text-only messages sent when each oral chemotherapy dose was due, one way (no need to reply) and addressed the end-users using their first name. Delivery of information about oral chemotherapy and side-effects was tailored to each individual's preferred frequency.

The careful design process described in this paper may serve to inform the development of future mobile phone-based medication adherence-enhancing interventions for people with cancer. A trial to explore end-users acceptability of and satisfaction with the intervention is currently underway.Trial Registration: ACTRN12618001987257p.