FAQs for CancerJourneyApps

1.What is “My Breast Cancer Journey”?

My Breast Cancer Journey is a mobile app that helps people learn about and manage a breast cancer diagnosis. The app works for the person diagnosed with breast cancer by providing them with access to personalized educational content specific to their diagnosis and their treatment plan.   The app also makes it easy for them to invite friends and family to join and support them in their journey. With the My Breast Cancer Journey app, users can share personalized content with select friends and family, creating a stronger and more effective support network.

2.When will “My Breast Cancer Journey” be available? On what platforms?

The app will be available late Summer 2014 for iOS and Android devices.

3.What inspired you to launch “My Breast Cancer Journey”?

I have been in the healthcare industry for most of my professional career and I wanted to focus my energy on helping people alleviate some of the frustrations they experience when navigating the healthcare system. After some very inspirational meetings at the National Breast Cancer Foundation in Dallas, Texas, it became clear what I could do so I set out to create the Cancer Journey apps.

4.Why should someone diagnosed with breast cancer use this app?

Being diagnosed with any type of cancer is very emotional. I've seen how the initial feelings of anger and frustration can subside once people start learning more about the disease, exploring their treatment options and simply deciding that they are going to beat their diagnosis. This app makes it simple to find relevant, easy-to-read resources, and to share that information with family and friends. Additionally, the app provides a safe and private outlet for everyone involved to stay informed and to help keep the support network engaged.

5.Why should someone not diagnosed with breast cancer use this app?

Unfortunately, we all know, or know of someone, who has been diagnosed with breast cancer.  And, while they experience the deepest emotions, their friends and family also become frustrated as they don’t know the best way to support their loved one through their journey.  By using this app, everyone can learn about the diagnosis together, they can also learn more about the emotional and social impact of a cancer diagnosis and get a sense of what to expect throughout the treatment process.  We've found that knowledge can be hugely beneficial for both the primary cancer patient and their loved ones.  

6.Do you plan to roll out additional apps for other forms of cancer? What's the timeline?  Why breast cancer first?

We plan on rolling out apps for other cancers following the launch of the breast cancer app. The candidates for forthcoming apps are prostate, lung, cervical and colo-rectal cancers. We are still in the planning process for determining the timing.

We chose to launch the My Breast Cancer Journey app first because it is the #1 cancer effecting women worldwide.

7.Is there a tutorial on how to use the service?

Help, support and tutorials will be made available through the cancerjourneyapps.com website and the apps.

8.What is the pricing structure for Cancer Journey? Is it free?

The app is available for free to anyone with a smartphone or tablet.

9.How does the information channel work? Who is providing the educational content?

We have licensed our content from the National Cancer Institute. They provide high quality, easy-to-read articles, which we've adapted for personalized use through the app.

10.Who can I share my updates with?

The primary user has total control over who they choose to share content with through the My Breast Cancer Journey app, including which friends and family can see what content. For example, more intimate content can be shared with a smaller group or even one person, while more general content can be shared broadly among the support network.

11.How many companion users can be linked to a single account?

There is no limit to the number of friends or family members who can join each network.  They just need an invite and to create their own "companion" account.

12.Can I share my updates on social media?

The feedback we’ve received indicates that most individuals prefer this service to remain a private network or community. In order to offer users the most control over privacy and shared content, we have not included the ability to share updates on traditional social media sites.

13.How do I link to a companion account?

Similar to creating a primary account, companions will need to download the app and fill out the registration form.  Companions just need to make sure they use the same email address where they received the invite. Once registered, the account owner will be asked to verify the identity of the individual and accept them as a friend or family member. From there, the relationship is established and both users can begin communicating and sharing content.

14.How did you obtain the funding for this project?

I have been in the fortunate position to be able to self-fund this project .

15.How does this differ from CareZone, Breast Cancer: Beyond the Shock and Breast Cancer Diagnosis Guide?

Those apps are all great solutions and deliver on what they were designed to do. However, none of them facilitates personalized delivery of content specific to each unique individual, their journey, their diagnosis and their treatment. No other app gives users the ability to share personal content across a private network dedicated to educating their supporters.

16.How is the security of user information guaranteed?

Security is an important aspect of what we deliver. Even though we are not required to conform to the HIPAA guidelines for protected health information and data privacy for a consumer app, we have built My Breast Cancer Journey to conform to those guidelines. Data is encrypted both in flight (as it travels across the internet) and where it is stored in our databases. We contract with large and reputable cloud service companies to provide the physical storage for our systems, and we provide geo-redundant backups so your information is always safe.

17.What will happen if the Cancer Journey servers are hacked/immobilized?

As stated, security is an important factor to us. We have taken every precaution possible to prevent this from occurring.  In the rare instance that this happens, there are notification guidelines within HIPAA that we will comply with to notify the effected parties.

18.Does a user run the risk of losing all of their data?

We have minimized the possibility of this happening by leveraging geo-redundant data centers, meaning the data is stored in two locations within the US.

19.What is Willowglade Technologies, and is Breast Cancer Journey a subsidiary?

Willowglade Technologies Corporation is the corporate entity that is producing the Cancer Journey Apps series of mobile apps. My Breast Cancer Journey is the first app within the Cancer Journey App series.