The Sav-AQ Project: Study of Obstacles and Levers Related to the Use of a Website Dedicated to Breast Cancer Patients; the Example of the Nouvelle-Aquitaine Region

The development of digital platforms is transforming caregiver-patient interactions and the dissemination of knowledge. Obtaining information from the Internet has become a habit for many patients and must be considered by caregivers. Thus, understanding the use of digital tools by patients is a public health issue. The Sav-AQ study aims to understand patterns of use by women with breast cancer and the role of health professionals. Sav-AQ is an exploratory feasibility study with a mixed design, exploring patient and healthcare experience before and after the integration of a specific website into their care pathways. The research is based on the digital platform "My Breast Cancer Network", which was built by and for patients with breast cancer. A group of 30 breast cancer patients and six healthcare professionals using the platform were followed. The results show that for all users, the activity on the website decreases over time. At the beginning of the course, patients were more assiduous, which can be explained by the search for elements related to an unknown care pathway. The results also show that technical skills to use the platform are necessary for patients and must be accompanied by a health professional. It is of interest to devise a larger study to assessing the impact of such a platform on patient healthcare uptake and health skills development.