Pain Education after CANcer (PECAN)-app: a new, innovative delivery method for pain science education in breast cancer survivors

Both in research and in clinical practice, interest in pain science educational interventions for treatment of persistent pain after breast cancer treatment has increased significantly over the past decades. Modern Pain Science Education (PSE) explains the neurophysiology of (chronic) pain, the nervous system's ability to modulate and perpetuate the pain experience, and highlights the influence of other factors (such as sleep, thoughts, feelings, and culture) on pain. Despite emerging evidence, some important issues should be addressed about current methods of delivery of PSE. First, the provision of individual face-to-face sessions requires considerable resources and may be prohibitive to participation if breast cancer survivors have limited means, mobility, motivation/courage or access to such services. Second, given the complex biopsychosocial nature of persistent pain after breast cancer treatment, a personalized approach is warranted. Therefore, more blended educational approaches and eHealth modalities with individualized information might be more suitable for this specific population. In order to tackle these issues, the general aim of this project is to deliver proof of concept for the use of apps using an Embodied Conversational Agent (ECA) or virtual agent in a health care setting, with specific emphasis on cancer aftercare. More specific, this project focus on an ECA-based app, the PECAN-app, for the delivery of individually-tailored PSE intervention in order to promote pain self-management and to reduce the high burden of persistent pain after breast cancer treatment. Consequently, the two-fold aim of the proposed project is: 1) To evaluate consumers' preferences for and the content and shaping of an ECA-based app, the PECAN app, to deliver PSE for cancer survivors with persistent pain through a qualitative study; and 2) To gather proof of concept for a) the convenience with and acceptability of an intervention with an ECA-based app for the delivery of PSE in breast cancer survivors with persistent pain; and b) a large efficacy trial in terms of estimates of efficacy and feasibility of methods through a pilot randomised controlled trial and qualitative study.

Keywords:CANCER PAIN, REHABILITATION, PAIN MANAGEMENT

Disciplines:Oncology not elsewhere classified, Anaesthesiology not elsewhere classified, Rehabilitation sciences