TY - JOUR
T1 - mHealth interventions to improve cancer screening and early detection
T2 - scoping review of reviews
AU - Schliemann, Désirée
AU - Tan, Min Min
AU - Hoe, Wilfred Mok Kok
AU - Mohan, Devi
AU - Taib, Nur Aishah
AU - Donnelly, Michael
AU - Su, Tin Tin
N1 - Funding Information:
This work was supported by the UK Research and Innovation Medical Research Council (537084059) and the Newton Fund Impact Scheme 2020-2021 (MIGHT/CEO/NUOF/4-2020 (06) for the study “Improving early detection and diagnosis of breast cancer among multi-ethnic rural communities in Malaysia – the implementation of the community education and navigation programme (CENP).” MD and DS were also supported by the UK Research and Innovation Medical Research Council and Global Challenges Research Fund (MR/S014349/1) during the conduct and write-up of this study.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2022 Journal of Medical Internet Research. All rights reserved.
PY - 2022/8
Y1 - 2022/8
N2 - Background: Cancer screening provision in resource-constrained settings tends to be opportunistic, and uptake tends to be low, leading to delayed presentation and treatment and poor survival. Objective: The aim of this study was to identify, review, map, and summarize findings from different types of literature reviews on the use of mobile health (mHealth) technologies to improve the uptake of cancer screening. Methods: The review methodology was guided by the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews). Ovid MEDLINE, PyscINFO, and Embase were searched from inception to May 2021. The eligible criteria included reviews that focused on studies of interventions that used mobile phone devices to promote and deliver cancer screening and described the effectiveness or implementation of mHealth intervention outcomes. Key data fields such as study aims, types of cancer, mHealth formats, and outcomes were extracted, and the data were analyzed to address the objective of the review. Results: Our initial search identified 1981 titles, of which 12 (0.61%) reviews met the inclusion criteria (systematic reviews: n=6, 50%; scoping reviews: n=4, 33%; rapid reviews: n=1, 8%; narrative reviews: n=1, 8%). Most (57/67, 85%) of the interventions targeted breast and cervical cancer awareness and screening uptake. The most commonly used mHealth technologies for increasing cancer screening uptake were SMS text messages and telephone calls. Overall, mHealth interventions increased knowledge about screening and had high acceptance among participants. The likelihood of achieving improved uptake-related outcomes increased when interventions used >1 mode of communication (telephone reminders, physical invitation letters, and educational pamphlets) together with mHealth. Conclusions: mHealth interventions increase cancer screening uptake, although multiple modes used in combination seem to be more effective.
AB - Background: Cancer screening provision in resource-constrained settings tends to be opportunistic, and uptake tends to be low, leading to delayed presentation and treatment and poor survival. Objective: The aim of this study was to identify, review, map, and summarize findings from different types of literature reviews on the use of mobile health (mHealth) technologies to improve the uptake of cancer screening. Methods: The review methodology was guided by the PRISMA-ScR (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses extension for Scoping Reviews). Ovid MEDLINE, PyscINFO, and Embase were searched from inception to May 2021. The eligible criteria included reviews that focused on studies of interventions that used mobile phone devices to promote and deliver cancer screening and described the effectiveness or implementation of mHealth intervention outcomes. Key data fields such as study aims, types of cancer, mHealth formats, and outcomes were extracted, and the data were analyzed to address the objective of the review. Results: Our initial search identified 1981 titles, of which 12 (0.61%) reviews met the inclusion criteria (systematic reviews: n=6, 50%; scoping reviews: n=4, 33%; rapid reviews: n=1, 8%; narrative reviews: n=1, 8%). Most (57/67, 85%) of the interventions targeted breast and cervical cancer awareness and screening uptake. The most commonly used mHealth technologies for increasing cancer screening uptake were SMS text messages and telephone calls. Overall, mHealth interventions increased knowledge about screening and had high acceptance among participants. The likelihood of achieving improved uptake-related outcomes increased when interventions used >1 mode of communication (telephone reminders, physical invitation letters, and educational pamphlets) together with mHealth. Conclusions: mHealth interventions increase cancer screening uptake, although multiple modes used in combination seem to be more effective.
KW - cancer
KW - cancer detection
KW - cancer screening
KW - digital health
KW - mHealth
KW - mobile health
KW - mobile phone
KW - oncology
KW - review
KW - scoping review
KW - scoping review of reviews
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=85136882539&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.2196/36316
DO - 10.2196/36316
M3 - Review Article
C2 - 35969450
AN - SCOPUS:85136882539
SN - 1438-8871
VL - 24
JO - Journal of Medical Internet Research
JF - Journal of Medical Internet Research
IS - 8
M1 - e36316
ER -
