A pioneering study introduced a pain monitoring app designed to provide real-time support for children undergoing cancer treatment. This app aimed to deliver educational content and immediate feedback from healthcare professionals for managing significant pain episodes, ultimately improving pain management for children at home. This study was published in ACS journals by Julia D. and colleagues.
In this study encompassing 184 children, with a mean age of 7.5 years and a range of 5.1 years, 48% were girls, and 63% were diagnosed with hemato-oncological conditions. Among the participants, 79 children were allocated to utilize the pain monitoring app, with 15 individuals discontinuing their participation during the study period. Meanwhile, the usual care group consisted of 90 children receiving standard care, with 11 individuals dropping out of the study.

Conducted as a non-blinded randomized controlled trial, the study enrolled 184 Dutch children receiving cancer treatment, randomly assigning them to use the pain monitoring app or receive standard care. The results unveiled:
Clinically Significant Pain Reduction: Children using the app reported significantly less clinically significant pain compared to those receiving usual care (OR 0.38; 95% CI, 0.198–0.734).
Improvements in Pain Severity: The app group exhibited notably lower pain severity (β = –0.27; 95% CI, –0.407 to –0.142) and reduced parental distress (β = –0.84; 95% CI, –1.61 to –0.03).
Evaluation of the App: Families positively evaluated the pain monitoring app, providing valuable feedback.
The groundbreaking app demonstrated its effectiveness in reducing clinically significant pain among children undergoing cancer treatment. While the app notably lessened pain severity and parental distress, further research is necessary to understand its precise mechanisms. The favorable feedback from families underscores its potential as a supportive tool in managing pediatric cancer-related pain.
Reference:
Simon, J. D. H. P., Schepers, S. A., van Gorp, M., Michiels, E. M. C., Fiocco, M., Grootenhuis, M. A., & Tissing, W. J. E. Pain monitoring app leads to less pain in children with cancer at home: Results of a randomized controlled trial. Cancer,2023. https://doi.org/10.1002/cncr.35100