App to help alleviate future cancer burden and create an innovative research platform
A recent Cancer Research UK report states that more than 500,000 people in the UK will be diagnosed with cancer by 2040 – putting overwhelming strain on the NHS and potentially lives at risks. But not all is doom and gloom. Digital integration may be the answer.
Your Health Companion was co-developed by DaSH Global, a leading real-world evidence health care company, in collaboration with patients, nurses, clinicians, and patient advocacy groups, including Lung Cancer Nursing UK and Mesothelioma UK, to help personalise care, deliver efficiencies in service and innovate research.
The digital app empowers patients to report their symptoms, side-effects, quality of life experience of care they receive, as well as expenses related to their cancer. By enabling them to keep a record in one place, across time, patients are better equipped to monitor changes in their health and wellbeing (self-management) and communicate these to healthcare professionals, so changes in their condition that occur between clinical appointments can be accurately reviewed, quickly assessed and better managed.
Your Health Companion will help transform the way cancer care, drugs and treatments are delivered, evaluated and improved. The app captures the patient perspective of the disease, treatments and the impacts of their care on an ongoing basis at home. This is then linked to the national clinical datasets to create a more holistic picture of care where the patient voice and quality of life are used for Real-World-Evidence and at the heart of all future research.
Catherine Fensom, a senior oncology nurse with over 20 years’ experience, who is Integration Director for Your Health Companion, said: “I am delighted to be involved with innovation that helps patients take more control in the management of their cancer. My focus and passion has always been to improve services for patients and to empower them to be involved in their care and treatment decisions. Ensuring both patients and nurses benefit from the app is my number one priority. I know exactly how useful this tool will be for nurses – but equally I understand the obstacles healthcare teams will encounter with integration. My role will be to help educate, support and onboard - so the app becomes a central part of routine clinical appointments and helps drive efficiencies in services.”
Catherine, a senior oncology nurse, has a wealth of experience delivering first-class cancer services. Having qualified as a nurse in 1997, she started in cancer services at East Cheshire NHS Trust in 2003 and has held several different oncology roles over the last 20 years working for both East Cheshire NHS Trust and The Christie Foundation NHS Trust in the past. Her roles have included Macmillan Project Manager, Matron for Oncology and Lead Cancer Nurse. Most recently Catherine worked as Operational Management Lead, The Christie at Macclesfield, a world-leading £26m new build unit, which has revolutionized radiotherapy and chemotherapy services for patients. The facility opened in December 2021 and now provides over 10,000 patient treatments a year.
The app has been welcomed by leading cancer charities, including LCNUK and Mesothelioma UK, who represent the patient community and will help drive take-up of the ‘Your Health Companion’ throughout England, Scotland, and Wales. Already, more than 30 Hospital Trusts have given approval for the app and hundreds of specialist nurses have been trained to work with it to engage with patients, their families, and support groups, in its use.