Effectiveness of a tailored web app on sun protection intentions and its implications for skin cancer prevention: A randomized controlled trial.
rct · Level II
Where this comes from
- Record sourced from PubMed, PMID 36812525.
- Also identified by DOI 10.1371/journal.pdig.0000032 and PMC identifier 9931317.
- Licence recorded as CC BY.
- The licence permits redistribution, so the abstract is shown in full and the full text is available from the publisher.
Abstract
Skin cancers related to sunexposure are rising globally, yet largely preventable. Digital solutions enable individually tailored prevention and may play a crucial role in reducing disease burden. We developed SUNsitive, a theory-guided web app to facilitate sun protection and skin cancer prevention. The app collected relevant information through a questionnaire and provided tailored feedback on personal risk, adequate sun protection, skin cancer prevention, and overall skin health. SUNsitive's effect on sun protection intentions and a set of secondary outcomes was evaluated with a two-arm randomized controlled trial (n = 244). At 2 weeks post-intervention, we did not find any statistical evidence for the intervention's effect on the primary outcome or any of the secondary outcomes. However, both groups reported improved intentions to sun protect compared to their baseline values. Furthermore, our process outcomes suggest that approaching sun protection and skin cancer prevention with a digital tailored "questionnaire-feedback" format is feasible, well-perceived, and well accepted. Trial registration: Protocol registration: ISRCTN registry (ISRCTN10581468).