How Emojis Could Benefit Cancer Patients

7 years ago by Laura

We absolutely love ❤️emojis. Not just because they’re cute ? but, like body language ? and facial expressions ?, they are a universal language that everybody can understand.

A new study by the Mayo Clinic, based in the US, has found that emojis could be a useful tool for cancer patients to express their emotional ? and physical ? well-being.

Researchers recruited 115 patients with lymphoma and multiple myeloma who all had an expected lifespan of five years or less, and owned an iPhone 5 (or later version) ?. Participants were given an Apple watch and Apple’s ResearchKit (a software framework for medical insights on a patient’s quality of sleep, pain, and mood) was used to collect data.

Emoji scales ⚖️ replaced lengthy paper questionnaires ✅ and scales, which can be intimidating for patients who may not be able to articulate how they are feeling in words ?.

“Cancer patients receive complex medical care, including surgery, radiation, chemotherapy and targeted agents that may result in physical, emotional, financial and spiritual consequences that can negatively impact quality of life and the ability to perform certain activities without help,” says lead author Carrie Thompson, M.D., a heamatologist at Mayo Clinic. “These quality of life factors play an important role in predicting survival and determining the best treatment options.”

Not only did patients prefer to send their daily reports through smart technology ⌚ but the data was also collected accurately and efficiently ?.

We love how innovative this idea is and how emojis could actually help people who really need it, if only in a very small way ?.