Technology’s role in supporting children undergoing cancer treatment – The Xploro App

Written by Anna Ransome

“The children are really happy using the Xploro app and they are getting the answers to their questions. Xploro is helping so much in the treatment of these children. Also, the parents have been using it and finding out information that they might not want to ask people about.”

– Gracious, Teacher at Mbingo Baptist Convention Hospital, Cameroon.

Why is Xploro Useful?

Xploro’s innovative app, usable on mobile phones, laptops and tablets, has been extremely successful in providing children with cancer in the UK with guidance on their treatment and what to expect during treatment procedures, and World Child Cancer was keen for children in lower-income countries to also have access to this very valuable resource.

Equipping patients and parents with knowledge around childhood cancer and what to expect following a diagnosis is a vital part of the process of successfully treating and managing cancer. Alongside the emotional trauma of a cancer diagnosis, children, parents (and siblings) are thrust into an unfamiliar, clinical world. Many struggle to understand the vocabulary, advice, rationale, and effectiveness of conventional treatment, and this can heighten stress levels as well as risk of rejecting or abandoning treatment altogether.

What is Xploro?

Xploro provides a child-friendly resource that builds this essential understanding around childhood cancers and their different treatment processes. Through the app, young patients customize an Avatar that becomes their guide throughout their healthcare journey. The Avatar introduces the child to each of the staff roles they will encounter, and complex and often scary technologies such as ultrasound and CT scans are introduced using interactive experiences that explain the full treatment pathway. Hospital environments can be explored using 3D reality models.

World Child Cancer worked with Xploro to enable the adaptation of their app for use in Ghana, Malawi and, most recently, Cameroon. This involved translation into different languages and new ward designs to mirror the wards at our partner hospitals. Avatar names were adapted, and a new procedure (on inserting a canula) was added. World Child Cancer also purchased tablets for use on the childhood cancer wards. The app was successfully adapted and piloted in Ghana, then rolled out to two more partner hospitals in Malawi and Cameroon. Combined, these hospitals see over 1,100 children with cancer each year.

“I was not scared of the machine and everything looked just like I had seen on the tablet.”

– Kelvin from Ghana, who used the Xploro app to prepare for his CT Scan.

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The impact of Xploro

As a result of using Xploro, children have a better understanding of their medical condition, treatment, its impact on their daily life, and are coping with challenges of hospitalisation, illness, managing pain, and preparing for medical procedures.

We would especially like to thank the Casey Trust and the Light Fund for supporting this work to bring Xploro to children in Ghana, Malawi, and Cameroon. By reducing stress and improving wellbeing and coping mechanisms, Xploro is improving health outcomes for children with cancer, and we are very grateful to our supporters in helping to make this happen.

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