Real-time management of chemotherapy toxicity using the Advanced Symptom Management System (ASyMS)

Abstract

This paper describes an ongoing study of the Advanced Symptom Management System (ASyMS) for patients receiving chemotherapy for breast or colorectal cancer. We begin by detailing the ASyMS work to date, providing an overview of research conducted in the field over the last ten years. The current study, ASyMS-III, is then presented, highlighting the study methodology, multi-site involvement, the outcomes being measured, and discussion of the tool. The paper concludes with reflections on the progress of the ASyMS-III study to date, and discusses potential directions for future research.

Keywords:

• real-time symptom assessment
• smartphone technology
• chemotherapy related toxicities

Acknowledgements

The ASyMS project is being conducted by a research team based at the University of Dundee. The ASyMS-III project is directly funded by Philips Healthcare Incubator, the Scottish Centre For Telehealth and Telecare, The Burdett Trust for Nursing and MacMillan Cancer Support.