Technology-Assisted mHealth Caregiver Support to Manage Cancer Patient Symptoms: A Randomized Controlled Trial

Area of Science:

• Oncology
• Gerontology
• Digital Health

Background:

• Caregivers of cancer patients in home hospice often lack adequate preparation for symptom management.
• Effective patient care coaching is crucial for improving the quality of life during end-of-life care.

Purpose of the Study:

• To evaluate the efficacy of an automated mHealth platform designed to assist caregivers in managing cancer patient symptoms during home hospice.
• To assess the impact of caregiver coaching and automated nurse notifications on patient symptom severity.

Main Methods:

• A randomized controlled trial involving 298 caregivers, comparing the Symptom Care at Home (SCH) intervention with usual hospice care (UC).
• The SCH platform involved daily automated symptom reporting by caregivers, tailored coaching, and alerts for moderate-to-severe symptoms.
• Patient symptom severity was assessed at baseline and at weeks one, two, four, and eight.

Main Results:

• The SCH intervention resulted in a significant mean overall symptom reduction of 4.89 points compared to UC (P < 0.001).
• A 38% reduction in days with moderate-to-severe patient symptoms was observed in the SCH group.
• Ten out of eleven physical and psychosocial symptoms were significantly reduced in the SCH group compared to UC.

Conclusions:

• Automated mHealth symptom reporting and coaching effectively reduce cancer patient symptoms during home hospice care.
• This approach offers a novel and efficient method for enhancing end-of-life care for cancer patients and their caregivers.