Cancer Patients Begin Innovative Use of Telemonitoring to Manage Oral Cancer Therapy

Online, April 14, 2010 (Newswire.com) - CHICAGO, March 2010-A clinical study is underway at Rex Cancer Center of Wakefield to evaluate the use of telemonitoring in managing the administration of Gleevec, a drug developed and manufactured by Novartis and used to treat chronic myeloid leukemia (CML). The purpose of the study is to assess the use of a cellphone-based, personalized drug management system called eMedonline to help manage patients' compliance with their Gleevec therapy and help identify and manage side effects.

Many recently developed cancer treatments are delivered orally and this is increasingly moving cancer treatment from the physician's office to the patient's home. Although oral cancer treatments offer convenient administration and the potential for improved quality of life, patient compliance is of concern. A review of cancer patient noncompliance published in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute found that up to 80% failed to strictly follow their prescriptions.

"Healthcare reform will fail without technologies to more efficiently manage and communicate with patients," said Robert Wehbie, MD, PhD, FACP, principal investigator on the study and oncologist at Rex. "Technology like eMedonline is uniquely positioned to provide this capability."

The eMedonline platform is designed to facilitate compliance data collection and help manage dosing. It was developed under a grant from the National Institute on Aging and a contract with the National Cancer Institute. It has consistently demonstrated adherence rates of 96% to 98%, along with clinically significant improvements in self efficacy, in randomized control studies among elderly chronic disease and cancer patients taking from 1 to 11 medications/day.

"The system goes beyond reminding patients to take their medications," explains Barbara Rapchak, Founder of Leap of Faith Technologies, the company that developed the eMedonline system. "It also helps them monitor their symptoms, side effects, and overall well-being using technology that integrates seamlessly into their lifestyle."

The eMedonline patient-centric approach creates an environment for sustainable change in a patient's behavior leading to greater medication compliance. In both acute and chronic care settings, improved medication compliance has shown to be critical in producing better medical outcomes.

A Systems Innovation in Behavior Change

The eMedonline platform represents a systems innovation in behavior-change science and technology. It integrates smartphones, radiofrequency identification (RFID), and behavioral informatics. It consists of a software application that runs on the cellphone, and a software application that runs on a remote server and collects data sent to it by the phone about patient-specific dosing events.

In the Gleevec study, the system is implemented as a "smart service" that leverages the wireless capabilities of RFID and cellphone technology by turning a cellphone into a medication sensor. Medication data read from a smart label (a label with RFID inlay) on the medication package is collected wirelessly by the phone in real time and helps verify that patients are taking the right drug at the right time while monitoring patient reported outcomes.

All data collected from the phone is sent wirelessly to a secure server where it is available for clinical review and analysis. Alerts can be triggered, enabling intervention in the case of missed medications or adverse events before they become a significant health risk.

More Effective Management of Cancer Treatment

If patients stop taking their cancer drugs, or take less than the prescribed dose, they run the risk of becoming resistant to the drug and do not receive the full benefit of the therapy. Telemonitoring may enhance outcomes by identifying patients who are not taking their medication properly to allow intervention as necessary. Telemonitoring also gives patients a measure of control by allowing them to proactively report symptoms and health status in a simple, automated way.

Facilitating patient self-efficacy and improving adherence to recommended dosing may optimize outcomes and reduce risk of relapse and disease progression. The end result may be more effective management of cancer treatment for patients, physicians and third-party payers.