BackgroundAcute Lymphoblastic Leukemia (ALL) is the most common childhood malignancy. Caring for children with ALL is challenging for parents. A mHealth supportive care intervention was developed to meet parents' needs. ObjectivesTo evaluate the potential effectiveness of this mHealth supportive care intervention on emotional distress, social support, care burden, uncertainty, quality of life and knowledge. MethodsA quasi-experimental pre-/post-design study was conducted form June 2015 to January 2016.In total, 101 parents were enrolled in the study, with 50 in the observation group and 51 in the intervention group. Parents in the observation group received the standard health education and were observed for 3 months. Parents in the intervention group received the mHealth supportive care intervention, in addition to the standard health education. The intervention consisted of two parts: an Android smartphone app "Care Assistant (CA)" and a WeChat Official Account. The CA with eight modules (Personal Information, Treatment Tracking, Family Care, Financial and Social Assistance, Knowledge Center, Self-Assessment Questionnaires, Interactive Platform, and Reminders) was the main intervention tool, while WeChat Official Account was the supplementary to update information and to realize interaction between parents and healthcare providers. Data of parents' social support, anxiety, depression, care burden, uncertainty in illness, quality of life, their existing knowledge of ALL and care, and knowledge need were collected before and after the 3-month study period in both groups. For the intervention group, parents' experience of receiving the intervention was also collected through individual interviews. Results Forty P<.001).Qualitative results showed that parents were satisfied with the intervention and their role in the caregiving process. ConclusionsThe mHealth intervention in supporting parents of children with ALL is effective. This study is informative for other future studies on providing mHealth supportive care for parents of children with cancer.

Acute lymphoblastic leukaemia (ALL) is the most common childhood malignancy. Caring for children with ALL is an uncommon experience for parents without medical training. They urgently need professional assistance when their children are recovering at home. This paper documents the process of developing an Android application (app) "Care Assistant" for family caregivers of children with ALL. Key informant interviews and focus group studies were used before programming the app. The key informants and focus group members included: caregivers of children with ALL, cancer care physicians and nurses, and software engineers. We found several major challenges faced by caregivers: limited access to evidence-based clinic information, lack of financial and social assistance, deficient communications with doctors or nurses, lack of disease-related knowledge, and inconvenience of tracking treatments and testing results. This feedback was used to develop "Care Assistant". This app has eight modules: personal information, treatment tracking, family care, financial and social assistance, knowledge centre, self-assessment questionnaires, interactive platform, and reminders. We have also developed a web-based administration portal to manage the app. The usability and effectiveness of "Care Assistant" will be evaluated in future studies.

Health-related quality of life among Chinese patients with fecal ostomies was less than optimal and influenced by multiple demographic and psychosocial factors. Additional research is needed to design strategies to improve HRQOL in this population.