ESPEN 2022 Late Breaking Abstracts

Topic:      Nutrition and cancer

Abstract Submission Identifier: ESPEN22-LB-2118

DEVELOPMENT AND UTILIZATION OF A SMARTPHONE APP FOR DATA COLLECTION AND MONITORING IN THE CONTEXT OF A HOME-BASED MULTIMODAL NUTRITION AND PHYSICAL EXERCISE INTERVENTION STUDY WITH ADVANCED TUMOUR PATIENTS

L. Gafner^*, ¹, M. Rühlin ¹, A. Joos ¹, M. Schmocker ², D. Meier ², R. Imoberdorf ³, M. Pless ⁴, P. E. Ballmer ⁵, L. J. Storck ¹

¹Kantonsspital Winterthur, Division of Internal Medicine, Division of Dietetics and Clinical Nutrition, ²Kantonsspital Winterthur, Institute for Therapy and Rehabilitation, ³Kantonsspital Winterthur, Division of Internal Medicine, ⁴Kantonsspital Winterthur, Division of Medical Oncology and Hematology, ⁵President, GESKES-SSNC, Winterthur, Switzerland

Rationale: Since advanced tumour patients are particularly susceptible to malnourishment, we developed a multimodal, home-based nutrition and physical exercise programme to improve their quality of life. The core element is a «mobile health» smartphone application («app») to facilitate participation and to increase adherence to the programme, while the study participants, who are often treated as outpatients, are still pursuing a profession and are active in their social life.

Methods: Our home-based intervention programme is tested in a randomized controlled trial with patients with advanced tumours of the lung or the gastrointestinal tract. In a substudy we investigated the feasibility and the acceptance of the app, which was developed for data collection and monitoring. Reasons for not participating in the study programme were analysed as well.

Results: Since July 2021, 1'597 oncology patients were screened and 197 (12%) had an advanced tumour of the lung or the gastrointestinal tract. 98 (50%) of those patients qualified for the study. The most common exclusion criteria was an estimated life expectancy of less than six months in 34 patients (34%). Only in four cases (4%), the treating oncologist identified the use of an app as the main obstacle. Out of the eligible candidates, 68% declined study participation, and the main reported reasons were no interest in the programme (67%), living too far away from the hospital (42%) and preferring other leisure activities (33%; multiple answers were possible). During app validation, 89% of an anonymized patient group (n=9) rated the usability as «very good», which was subsequently confirmed by the study participants enrolled so far (n=22). Difficulties were mainly reported regarding the recording of meals. The rate of premature study drop-outs (23%; n=2 intervention, n=3 control) is higher than expected based on previous studies.

Conclusion: A home-based nutritional and physical exercise programme in combination with «mobile health» in form of a smartphone app seems feasible, as confirmed by first recruitment results and the overall good acceptance of the app. The high rate of premature drop-outs calls for further clarification and potential adaptations to the study protocol.

References: -

Disclosure of Interest: None Declared

Keywords: None