Last year I presented A Smart APProach to Cancer during the inaugural Ignite Carroll event, showcasing apps that I used during my treatment. As a supplement to my presentation, I wanted to share an expanded list of useful apps for cancer care and beyond. Whether you are a caregiver or patient, apps are a perfect tool for managing your medical information and personal well-being.
Organization and Management |
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Chemo Calendar | Use this app during chemotherapy treatments to track blood cell counts, symptoms and medications. Chemo Calendar captures and organizes all your information and tracks your symptoms. Reports can be emailed directly to your doctor. | Free iPhone only |
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My Medical | A comprehensive record keeping app for yourself or family members. You can track as many health records as you need in a single purchase. Use as a digital file cabinet to store lab work, x-rays and important documents. This app will remind you of doctor’s appointments, prescription dosage and upcoming lab tests. | $3.99 iPhone/ $1.99 Android |
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MedHelper Pro | Useful app for tracking prescriptions. Set alarms to remind you when medications need to be taken, and receive notifications of upcoming doctor appointments and prescription refills. | $3.99 iPhone/Android |
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Evernote | This easy to use app helps you remember everything! Evernote is a cloud based service that stores documents, notes, health records and to do lists. Scan items (using your phone’s camera), import PDFs, store receipts and record audio during doctor visits. Items are searchable and organized by notebooks and tags. Evernote syncs across multiple devices (PC, tablet, phone), allowing quick access to important information anytime, anyplace. | Free iPhone/Android Premium service available $5.00/month |
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Hello Doctor | A simple and secure app, that helps people manage their medical records. Allows you to easily aggregate your paper and digital medical records on your mobile device, and add notes when meeting with your doctor. | Free iPhone/iPad only |
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WorldCard Mobile | Scanning application that uses OCR (text recognition) to instantly transfer information from business cards to your phone’s contacts. With a click of your phone's camera, you no longer have to manually input contact information from business cards. | $2.99 iPhone only Free trial available |
Note: Your insurance and medical flex spending companies are likely to have apps to assist you with managing co-pays, claims and reimbursements. You can use your phone to quickly receive reimbursements for medical expenses by taking pictures of receipts and then electronically submitting information to your FSA. |
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Relaxation and Wellness |
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Music Therapy: Oncology | Therapeutic music playlist designed specifically for patients in an oncology setting to help you relax during treatment. | $2.99/month iPhone only Free trial available |
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Songza | A music streaming service that offers a playlist based on your selected activity or time of day. Select the relaxation playlist during treatment days. | Free iPhone/Android |
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Relax Melodies: Sleep Zen Sounds | Select soothing sounds and melodies to help you relax during treatments or fall asleep. Includes timers and alarms if needed. | Free for basic iPhone/Android $2.99 for upgrade |
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Relax with Andrew Johnson Lite | Do you have difficulty relaxing on your own? Let clinical hypnotherapist, Andrew Johnson help ease your tension by narrating you through a series of relaxation techniques. | Free for basic iPhone/Android $2.99 for upgrade |
Health and Fitness |
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Fooducate | Do you know what you are really eating? Scan or manually search food and drink items to reveal a nutritional grade from A to D. Fooducate’s grading scale is based on an algorithm using the ingredients list. The grading system is developed by scientists and dietitians. Includes an "alternatives" item list to help you shop healthier! | Free for basic use. iPhone/Android $9.99 lifetime subscription available |
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Waterlogged | Drinking water is critical to good health, but especially important during chemotherapy treatments. This app tracks your water intake in fun visual way. | Free for basic use. iPhone only |
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MyFitnessPal | The fastest and easiest calorie counter! Includes the largest food database and convenient barcode scanning input. MyFitnessPal also includes an exercise tracker to monitor the amount of calories worked off through the day. Connect with friends option. | Free iPhone/Android |
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RunKeeper | Track your runs, walks, bike rides and more using the GPS in your phone. Provides encouragement and coaching during your exercise. Listen to music, capture photos and post your activities and achievements with others. | Free for basic use iPhone/Android Various upgrades available from $9.99-$19.99 |
Tips for finding apps:
- Search for apps in a browser rather than in the App Store/Google Play
- Try Quixey: a search engine designed specifically for apps
- Review the Ratings and Reviews- a good way to find better apps is to sort by the ratings given by customers. Remember to look at both the rating and how many times the app has been rated.
- Review the Version History- this indicates how consistently the developer does updates to improve the app (look for current updates).
