Cancer ScreeningmHEALTHNCT07725328
Pragmatic Mobile Health Trial to Promote Cancer Screening and Healthy Behaviors
A study testing Intensive Engagement and Standard Engagement in people with Cancer Screening and Chronic Diseases in Older Adults, run by National University Hospital, Singapore at 1 site in Singapore.
Trial summary
Cancer is the leading cause of death in Singapore, but many people who are eligible for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening do not get screened on time. Many adults also have chronic health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and obesity, which can often be reduced through… Read more about this study
- Who is it for?
- Ages 50 to 69 years, women onlyHealthy volunteers can take part
- Conditions the study is for
- Cancer Screening, Chronic Diseases in Older Adults, Early Cancer Detection
- What is being tested?
- Intensive Engagement and Standard Engagement
- Type of treatment
- Lifestyle or therapy programme
- Could I receive a placebo?
- No, everyone receives an active treatment
- How many people
- 2,000 participants
- Where
- 1 siteSingapore
- Study dates
- 1 Sep 2026to 31 Dec 2028
- Phase
- Interventional
Key requirements
Who can take part, as listed by the sponsor. Only the study team can confirm whether you are eligible, so take this list to your doctor.
- Ages 50 to 69 years
- Women only
- Healthy volunteers accepted
- Adult, Older adult
Who may be able to join
- If using app for message delivery: Registered NUHS App users or HealthHub App users OR if using SMS for message delivery: Participants must have a mobile number recorded in electronic medical records (EPIC).
- Female
- Singapore citizen
- Aged 50-69 years
- With or without prior diagnosis of cancer
Who cannot join
- Participants unable to provide informed consent and take surveys, such as those with cognitive impairments or severe mental health conditions.
- Participants with terminal illness or serious comorbidities that preclude them from participating in preventive health programs.
- Pregnant women: Given the target age group (50-69 years), the prevalence of pregnancy is expected to be extremely low.
Trial locations and contacts
1 site in 1 country. Contact the study team or a site near you to ask about taking part.
About this study
Official title: Pragmatic Randomized Trial Using Mobile Health (mHealth) Technology to Change Cancer Screening Behavior and Promote Healthier Lifestyle
Cancer is the leading cause of death in Singapore, but many people who are eligible for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancer screening do not get screened on time. Many adults also have chronic health conditions such as high blood pressure, diabetes, high cholesterol, and obesity, which can often be reduced through healthier lifestyle habits. Although reminders for screening are available, they may not be enough to encourage long-term healthy behaviours.
This study will evaluate whether regular health messages delivered through a mobile health (mHealth) platform can help improve cancer screening participation and promote healthier lifestyles among Singaporean women aged 50-69 years. Participants will be randomly assigned to one of two groups. The control group will receive standard cancer screening reminders every six months. The intervention group will receive monthly evidence-based health messages, including information on cancer screening, healthy eating, physical activity, and other healthy lifestyle behaviours, delivered through the NUHS App (or a similar mobile platform) or SMS.
The study will compare whether more frequent and engaging health messages lead to higher participation in recommended cancer screening, greater engagement with the digital platform, and healthier lifestyle behaviours compared with standard reminders. The findings may help identify an effective and scalable digital approach to support cancer prevention and healthy ageing across Singapore.
Read the detailed description
Cancer remains the leading cause of death in Singapore despite the availability of national screening programmes for breast, cervical, and colorectal cancers. Participation in recommended cancer screening remains below desired levels, while chronic diseases associated with unhealthy lifestyle behaviours continue to increase. Existing approaches to promoting preventive health often rely on infrequent reminders and may be insufficient to support sustained behavioural change.
Singapore's widespread use of smartphones and digital health platforms provides an opportunity to deliver scalable mobile health (mHealth) interventions. This pragmatic randomized trial will evaluate whether regular delivery of evidence-based health messages through the NUHS App (or a similar mobile platform) or SMS can improve participation in recommended cancer screening and promote healthier lifestyle behaviours among Singaporean women aged 50-69 years.
Participants will receive either standard screening reminders or a more intensive programme of health messages covering cancer screening, healthy diet, physical activity, weight management, and other preventive health topics. The study will evaluate whether a sustained digital engagement strategy is more effective than standard reminders in encouraging long-term health behaviour change.
Because the intervention is delivered using existing healthcare digital infrastructure, the findings will inform whether this approach can be implemented at scale to improve cancer prevention and support healthy ageing in Singapore.
- Conditions
- Cancer Screening, Chronic Diseases in Older Adults, Early Cancer Detection, Mammography, Fecal Immunochemical Test, Colonoscopy
- Being tested
- Intensive Engagement, Standard Engagement
- Keywords
- Mobile health technology (mhealth), Healthy lifestyle behaviour, Behaviour intervention, Sustained engagement, Early cancer detection, Cancer screening, Behavioral intervention
What participants receive
What participants receive. In a randomised study each person is assigned to one group by chance.
Intensive EngagementBehavioural
Participants will receive the standard bi-annual health messages as in Arm 1, supplemented with additional monthly messages through PN via the app OR via SMS, that provide comprehensive information on general population cancer screening guidelines, healthy lifestyle practices, motivational health messages, video links, and details about relevant events over a period of 12 months. In addition to the monthly messages, participants will be invited to attend up to 12 webinars (on women's health/screening/nutrition/lifestyle related topics) and 12 in-person or virtual group events (like simple low-intensity exercise/ walking/ basic yoga/ tai chi/nutritional cooking etc.) over 12 months. Interested participants may also be asked to join a moderated chatgroup (using Telegram app). The chatgroup is intended to promote peer support and healthy habit building.
Standard EngagementBehavioural
Participants receive two standard health messages through PN via the NUHS app or similar platforms OR via SMS - one at recruitment and a subsequent reminder message after 6 months. The content will include general population cancer screening guidelines (breast, colorectal, and cervical cancers) and information pertaining to healthy lifestyle practices (including maintaining a healthy BMI, balanced diet, and sufficient exercise).
| Study group | Role | What they receive |
|---|---|---|
| Standard Messaging Arm (Arm 1) | Other | Participants receive standard cancer screening reminders through the NUHS App or SMS according to usual practice. Receives: Behavioral: Standard Engagement |
| Intensive Engagement Arm (Arm 2) | Experimental | Participants receive regular evidence-based health messages through the NUHS App or SMS to promote cancer screening and healthy lifestyle. Receives: Behavioral: Intensive Engagement |
What is being measured
The primary outcome is the main question the study is designed to answer.
Comparison of Screen-Adherent Participants Between Arm 1 and Arm 2
Proportion of screen-adherent participants (in %) in Arm-2 versus Arm-1 at 24 months.
Non-adherence at baseline is defined as not being fully adherent to screening guidelines for all three cancers (with cervical cancer screening excluded for those not sexually active).
Adherence following the intervention is defined as showing at least one improvement in adherence (e.g., previously adherent to only cervical cancer screening, with subsequent adherence to colorectal cancer screening).
Measured: 24 months post-intervention
Secondary outcomes (4)
Proportion of participants with BMI in the healthy range
Proportion of participants (in %) with BMI in the healthy range (18.5-22.9 kg/m2) in Arm 1 vs Arm 2
Measured: 24 months post-intervention
Proportion of participants achieving a daily goal of 10,000 steps
Proportion of participants (in %) achieving a daily goal of 10,000 steps in Arm 1 vs Arm 2
Measured: 24 months post-intervention
Proportion of participants with recommended moderate-intensity aerobic activity
Proportion of participants (in %) with 150-300 minutes of moderate-intensity aerobic activity in Arm 1 vs Arm 2
Measured: 24 months post-intervention
Proportion of participants eating recommended servings of fruits/vegetables daily at 24 months
Proportion of participants eating at least 5 servings of fruits/vegetables daily in Arm 1 vs Arm 2
Measured: 24 months post-intervention
Timeline
From the start of the study to its completion; the mark is today. Estimated dates are the sponsor’s plan.
- First posted24 Jul 2026
- Study start1 Sep 2026 (estimated)
- Primary completion31 Oct 2028 (estimated)
- Study completion31 Dec 2028 (estimated)
Resources
- Official record on ClinicalTrials.govThe registry entry this page is built from, with its full change history.
- Other trials for Cancer ScreeningStudies of the same condition, open and under way.
- What the trial phases meanHow a treatment moves from first tests in people to approval.
More details
For doctors and researchers: how the study is designed, who runs it, and its registry IDs.
Study design
- Study type
- Interventional
- Phase
- Phase N/A
- Primary purpose
- Screening
- Allocation
- Randomised
- Intervention model
- Parallel groups
- Masking
- None (open label)
- Enrolment
- 2,000 participants (estimated)
Sponsor and investigators
- Lead sponsor
- National University Hospital, Singapore
- Sponsor type
- University, hospital or other
- Responsible party
- Sponsor
- Investigators
- Soo-Chin Lee, MBBS, MRCP, Principal investigator, National University Hospital, Singapore
IDs, dates and publications
- ClinicalTrials.gov ID
- NCT07725328
- Sponsor's protocol ID
- 2024-4448
- Acronym
- mHEALTH
- Status last verified
- Jul 2026
- First submitted
- 21 Jul 2026
- Last updated
- 24 Jul 2026
- Results posted
- No
- Data monitoring committee
- No
- FDA-regulated drug
- No
- FDA-regulated device
- No
- Individual data sharing
- No