GOSH YPAG are involved in a ground-breaking project to personalise childhood cancer treatment. The technology will be able to calculate each patients’ drug exposure within a drop of their own blood. This will mean, the amount of cancer drugs the patient has can be adjusted to suit them, so the treatment is most effective. Due to this, the side effects should be reduced as the treatment will be individualised.
What did GOSH YPAG contribute?
So far, we have been involved in two initial meetings for the ChromaDose project. In addition, we gave feedback on our thoughts to multiple questions on our Jamboard and/or within our larger discussion groups. An example of a couple of pertinent questions included:
Missing school and anxiety before the blood tests were a concern. However, the positive thoughts were that it might help ‘me or others health and treatment’.
What is your confidence in technology-would you trust a robot and consider the design and operation of the blood testing tool?
This important question created lots of debate. For example, GOSH YPAG members were keen ‘the machine was colourful, fun but also professional and serious`’. However, they were concerned about ‘the machine going wrong or being hacked’ and that it ‘would not have the compassion of a human nor understand the pain the patient is feeling’.
GOSH YPAG members, as always, were full of ideas and have helped the ChromaDose project to its next stage. We are excited, to be part of this innovative 30-month project, especially to help with the development of the technology and of course trying the machine out.
Watch this space!
By Oceiah
(GOSH YPAG member)