Evidence map›Paper›PMID 39908548›Full record

SynthesisJMIR cancer2025

The Effect of Nutritional Mobile Apps on Populations With Cancer: Systematic Review.

Krystal Lu Shin Ng, Murallitharan Munisamy, Joanne Bee Yin Lim, Mustafa Alshagga

Registry-linked trialAbstract readSystematic Review
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Synthesis in JMIR cancer, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT07606417 (Telemedicine-Delivered Nutritional Counseling Versus Standard Care for Cancer Cachexia in Pakistani Cancer Patients), which is not on this map. Cited by 4 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
4citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

What it found

Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.

The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.

2 · The registry

The trial behind it

Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.

NCT07606417 naactive not recruitingnot on this mapstarted 2026, after this paper: background citation

Telemedicine-Delivered Nutritional Counseling Versus Standard Care for Cancer Cachexia in Pakistani Cancer Patients: A Pilot Randomized Controlled Trial

TypeinterventionalSponsorKing Edward Medical UniversityRan2026 to 2027Enrolled80ConditionsCachexia, Cancer, SarcopeniaArmsTelemedicine-Delivered Nutritional Counseling, Standard In-Person Nutritional Counseling
3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

4 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Review
  3. Article
  4. Observational
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

4 authors.

Krystal Lu Shin NgDivision of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus, Semenyih, Malaysia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1573-8409
Murallitharan Munisamy *National Cancer Society Malaysia, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1586-8529
Joanne Bee Yin LimSchool of Humanities, Faculty of Art and Social Sciences, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus, Semenyih, Malaysia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0002-2382-0453
Mustafa AlshaggaDivision of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Science and Engineering, University of Nottingham Malaysia Campus, Semenyih, Malaysia.ORCID https://orcid.org/0000-0001-5064-2560

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundLimited access to nutrition support among populations with cancer is a major barrier to sustainable and quality cancer care. Increasing use of mobile health in health care has raised concerns about its validity and health impacts.

objectiveThis systematic review aimed to determine the effectiveness of commercial or cancer-specific nutritional mobile apps among people living with cancer.

methodsA systematic search of the CENTRAL, Embase, PubMed (MEDLINE), and Scopus databases was carried out in May 2024. All types of intervention studies were included, except observational studies, gray literature, and reference lists of key systematic reviews. Studies were eligible for inclusion if they involved (1) patients with or survivors of cancer and (2) nutrition-related mobile apps. Studies were excluded if the nutrition intervention was not delivered via mobile app or the app intervention was accompanied by dietary counseling. The review process was conducted based on the PRISMA (Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses) guidelines. The Risk of Bias 2 and Risk of Bias in Nonrandomized Studies tools were used to assess the study quality. The Cochrane Review Manager (version 5.4) software was used to synthesize the results of the bias assessment.

resultsA total of 13 interventions were included, comprising 783 adults or teenagers with cancer. Most studies focused on breast cancer (6/13, 46%), overweight (6/13, 46%), and survivors (9/13, 69%). Data on anthropometry and body composition (7/13, 54%; 387 participants), nutritional status (3/13, 23%; 249 participants), dietary intake (7/13, 54%; 352 participants), and quality of life (6/13, 46%; 384 participants) were gathered. Experimental groups were more likely to report significant improvements in body weight or composition, dietary compliance, nutritional status, and quality of life than control groups.

conclusionsAlthough mobile app platforms are used to deliver nutrition interventions, the evidence for long-term efficacy, particularly in populations with cancer, remains elusive. More robust randomized controlled trials with larger sample sizes, as well as more homogeneous population characteristics and outcome measures, are warranted.

trial registrationPROSPERO CRD42023330575; https://tinyurl.com/55v56yaj.

Indexed as

Mobile ApplicationsNeoplasmsCancer SurvivorsFemaleHumansNutritional StatusQuality of LifeTelemedicinebody compositioncancerdietinterventionmHealthmobile appmobile healthmobile phonenutritionPRISMAquality of life

Identifiers

PMID39908548
PMCPMC11840368

What Socratic holds

Textmetadata
LicenceCC BY
Read underepoch 390

Registered trials

Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the Socratic graph.