BMT-CARE App Improves Quality of Life and Mental Health for Caregivers

The BMT-CARE app boosted quality of life, as well as lowered depression and PTSD symptoms: © stock.adobe.com.

The BMT-CARE app, a psychosocial digital health tool, led to meaningful improvements in quality of life, caregiving burden, depression, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) symptoms, and coping skills for caregivers of people undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation, according to study findings presented at the 2025 ASCO Annual Meeting.

“Caregivers (i.e., relatives and friends) of patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation struggle with considerable quality of life impairments and psychological strain before, during, and after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation,” lead study author Dr. Jamie M. Jacobs wrote in the study. “However, few interventions address the supportive care needs of these caregivers while prioritizing accessibility and scalability.”

Jacobs is the clinical director of the Supportive Oncology Unit for Research, Clinical Care, and Education (SOURCE). She is also the program director of the Center for Psychiatric Oncology & Behavioral Sciences and directs caregiving research for the Cancer Outcomes Research Program, all at the Massachusetts General Hospital. In addition, she is an assistant professor of psychology at Harvard Medical School, located in Boston.

At 60 days after transplant, caregivers who used the BMT-CARE App reported better quality of life compared to those receiving usual care, with scores of 76.2 versus 69.9 — surpassing the 5-point difference considered clinically meaningful on the CareGiver Oncology QOL questionnaire. App users also reported lower caregiving burden (11.2 versus 12.3), fewer depression symptoms (3.8 versus 5.6), and fewer PTSD symptoms (26 versus 31.3), as well as stronger coping skills (33.9 versus 28.2). There were no significant differences between groups in anxiety symptoms or self-efficacy at day 60.

The CareGiver Oncology QOL questionnaire is a tool used to measure the overall well-being of people caring for someone with cancer; higher scores indicate better quality of life.

“We also saw very high engagement with the app itself, which is notable because apps tend to have a pretty high dropout rate,” Jacobs said in an interview with Targeted Oncology — CURE’s sister brand. “It’s hard to get people to use them beyond a few days — we’ve all experienced that to some degree. So, the fact that they were so engaged with the app over time shows that even a brief, self-guided, evidence-based intervention can improve quality of life, reduce burden, and improve mood symptoms for these family and friend caregivers.”

Information on the Trial

This randomized clinical trial evaluated whether a psychosocial mobile application, called the CARE app, improved quality of life and caregiving experience for people supporting patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation.

Participants were assigned to one of two groups: usual care alone or usual care plus access to the CARE app, which was developed specifically to support caregivers of transplant recipients.

The study followed participants for up to 100 days after transplant and enrolled about 120 caregivers.

Participants engaged with the app starting before transplant and continued through 60 days afterward. Study outcomes were assessed at baseline and day 60 post-transplant using validated measures for quality of life, caregiving burden, psychological symptoms, coping skills, and self-efficacy, with analyses adjusting for baseline values.

Adult caregivers over 18 who were relatives or friends living with the patient or designated as caregivers during the transplant process were eligible. Caregivers of patients receiving allogeneic or autologous transplants for cancer could participate. Participants needed to understand and speak English because the CARE app was only available in English.

Caregivers of patients receiving transplants for noncancerous blood conditions were excluded, as were those with acute or unstable psychiatric or cognitive conditions that the care team believed would prevent informed consent or study participation.

Reference

1. “Psychosocial digital application for caregivers of patients undergoing hematopoietic stem cell transplantation (HSCT): A randomized controlled trial,” by Jacobs JM, et al. J Clin Oncol.

For more news on cancer updates, research and education, don’t forget to subscribe to CURE®’s newsletters here.