Background: Breast cancer, the most common cancer among women, has a high survival rate due to advances in medical treatment. Mobile health (mHealth) interventions offer promising avenues for psychosocial support, yet limited evidence exists regarding their feasibility and acceptability among Asian breast cancer populations.
Aims: This study developed and pilot-tested a mobile app designed to enhance self-efficacy and resilience among breast cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.
Methods: This study was conducted in two phases. Phase One involved qualitative research and expert panel discussions to develop the "i KMU Breast Cancer Care Hub" prototype based on patient needs. Phase Two conducted a randomized controlled trial (RCT) using a two-group pretest-posttest design in a medical center in southern Taiwan. Seventy-three patients were randomized to receive either standard care plus app access (n = 37) or standard care alone (n = 36). Feasibility outcomes included recruitment rate, retention rate, adherence, and usability scores. In addition, data on self-efficacy and resilience were collected at baseline and 4 weeks post-intervention using validated scales.
Results: High task completion rates and good app usability were observed, along with generally positive user satisfaction (75.88 ± 15.87). Eighty-three patients were approached, with a refusal rate of 12%. No attrition was observed during the study. The experimental group showed significant improvements in self-efficacy (p = 0.01), especially in decision-making (p = 0.03) and positive attitude (p = 0.01), compared to the control group (p = 0.01 and p = 0.02, respectively). No significant change was observed in stress reduction (p = 0.13). Although resilience declined in both groups, the experimental group experienced a smaller decrease, suggesting a protective effect of the intervention.
Conclusions: The mobile application demonstrated good feasibility, high acceptability, and significant psychosocial benefits by enhancing self-efficacy and mitigating declines in resilience. These findings contribute to the growing evidence supporting the use of mHealth interventions within psycho-oncology to empower breast cancer patients during active treatment.
Trial registration: https://clinicaltrials.gov/: NCT05576545.
Keywords: application; breast cancer; mobile app; resilience; self‐efficacy.
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