Pain Buddy

Pain Buddy is a smartphone app designed by researchers at the University of California, Irvine to assist children and teens with cancer related pain and symptoms. Users will interact their Pain Buddy to document pain, symptoms, and things they do to manage their symptoms. Findings will help doctors, nurses, and parents get the information they need to give children treatments for pain and symptom management that work.

Users can switch between 3 Pain Buddy avatars: Croco, Pug, and Koala. In addition to documenting pain and symptoms, users can earn virtual coins for each diary completion. Coins can be used within the app to unlock and play games and purchase clothes and accessories from the in-app store.

Participants will be randomly placed into the Control Group or the Pain Buddy group. Both groups will have access to the Pain Buddy app, which includes daily diaries, games, and avatar care, such as grooming and accessorizing. The Pain Buddy group includes 2 additional features that are not included in the control group: Remote monitoring by a healthcare provider, and cognitive behavioral skills (CBT) training.

Pain Buddy was specially designed with a system created by oncology nurses and doctors to let us know if the symptoms reported in the diaries would be something the healthcare team thinks might benefit from clinical guidance. Pain Buddy is not meant to give medical advice or designed to replace a nurse or doctor. For medical emergencies, please dial 911.