Do prostate cancer-related mobile phone apps have a role in contemporary prostate cancer management? A systematic review by EAU young academic urologists (YAU) urotechnology group.

To review the available literature regarding the use of prostate cancer-related mobile phone applications (PCA).

The search was for English language articles between inceptions of databases to June 2019. Medline, EMBASE, Cochrane Library, CINAHL and Web of Science were searched. Full-text articles were reviewed, and the following data were extracted to aid with app analysis: name of application, developer, platform (Apple App Store or Google Play Store) and factors assessed by the article.

The search yielded 1825 results of which 13 studies were included in the final review. 44 PCAs were identified from the data collected of which 59% of the PCAs had an educational focus. 11 apps were inactive and 5 weren't updated within the last year. Five studies focused on the development and testing of apps (MyHealthAvatar, CPC, Rotterdam, Interaktor, NED). Two studies evaluated the readability of PCAs. Most PCAs had a reading level greater than that of the average patient. Two studies evaluated the quality and accuracy of apps. Majority of PCAs were accurate with a wide range of information. The study reported most PCAs to have deficient or insufficient scores for data protection. Two studies evaluated the accuracy of Rotterdam, CORAL and CPC risk calculators. Rotterdam was the best performer.

PCAs are currently in its infancy and do require further development before widespread integration into existing clinical practise. There are concerns with data protection, high readability standards and lack of information update in current PCAs. If developed appropriately with responsible governance, they do have the potential to play important roles in modern-day prostate cancer management.

World journal of urology. 2020 Apr 22 [Epub ahead of print]

Enakshee Jamnadass, Bhavan Prasad Rai, Domenico Veneziano, Theodoros Tokas, Juan Gomez Rivas, Giovanni Cacciamani, Bhaskar Somani

University Hospital Southampton NHS Trust, Southampton, UK., Freeman Hospital, Newcastle, UK. ., Department of Urology and Renal Transplantation, Bianchi-Melacrino-Morelli Hospital, Reggio Calabria, Italy., Tirol Kliniken, Milser Strasse 10, Hall in Tirol, Austria., Department of Urology, Hospital Universitario La Paz, Madrid, Spain., Department of Urology, USC Urology Institute, University of Southern California, Los Angeles, CA, USA.