Oncology and Cancer Mobile Medical Apps

The growing number of healthcare professionals utilizing mobile phone medical applications daily is contributing to a rapid growth in this market segment.  Drawing on responses from 5,490 doctors, the 2011 Digital MD Marketing research shows that 67% of PCPs and 61% of specialists now have a smartphone, and 27% of PCPs and specialists alike have tablet computers (such as iPads) – about 5 times the level in the general population.

“Mobile devices have quickly become a preferred vehicle for physicians to access clinical information due to their ease of use and inherent portability,” according to Dr. D’Amico, the director of clinical oncology at Duke Comprehensive Cancer Center in Durham, N.C.

Oncology and cancer related specialists continue to grow their usage of mobile technology, with 20% of oncologists regularly using mobile-devices.  Oncology is one of the few fields in medicine where things commonly change at a very rapid pace, with protocols, drug regimens and new research impacting day to day the way patients are cared for.  Consequently, keeping in touch is a much higher priority for oncologists than for your average family practitioner with respect to researching new developments.

Wafik S. El-Deiry, MD, PhD, chief of hematology/oncology at Penn State Hershey Cancer Institute in Hershey, said he uses Twitter to tell colleagues about advances in genetics and therapies related to cancer.

Given that the field of oncology is constantly evolving with new targeted therapies and treatment options, it will remain an area where smartphones will truly benefit clinicians who are caring for patients.