Cigna and HopeLab Team up to Bring Health Games to Medical Professionals, Patients
Redwood City, CA and Bloomfield, CT (PRWEB) September 16, 2013 -- Global health service company Cigna (NYSE: CI) and HopeLab today announced that HopeLab’s free cancer-fighting Re-Mission 2 online games and the Re-Mission 2: Nanobot’s Revenge mobile app, developed with support from Cigna, will demo in Booth #307 at the Association of Pediatric Hematology/Oncology Nurses (APHON) 37th Annual Conference and Exhibit, taking place September 19–21, 2013, in Louisville, Kentucky. Designed to help young cancer patients stick to their treatments, the games are free to play online at http://www.re-mission2.org and free to download for Android and iOS (Apple) mobile devices.
Cigna and HopeLab previously announced a joint effort to promote the Re-Mission 2 online games and app to a global audience, including medical professionals and caregivers who support young cancer patients. The annual APHON conference gathers more than 900 pediatric and adolescent and young adult (AYA) hematology/oncology nurses and other healthcare professionals to explore ways to enhance their practice. At the conference, attendees will have the opportunity to play and learn about the Re-Mission 2 games and the support they provide to young cancer patients. Research shows that playing the games boosts players’ positive emotions, increases self-efficacy (their belief in their ability to fight cancer) and shifts attitudes about chemotherapy, which lead to better adherence to prescribed treatments.
"Technology and games offer new ways for medical professionals to support the health of young cancer patients," said Scott Josephs, M.D., Cigna national medical officer. "Cigna is pleased to help raise visibility for HopeLab’s Re-Mission 2 games and the research behind them."
Each Re-Mission 2 game puts players inside the body to defeat cancer, using weapons like chemotherapy, antibiotics and the body’s immune cells. The action parallels real-world medical treatments used to fight cancer. The games are designed specifically for teens and young adults who are at risk of adverse cancer outcomes due to poor treatment adherence. The new games apply insights from a brain-imaging study published in 2012 by HopeLab and Stanford University researchers showing that Re-Mission, a video game about killing cancer in the body, strongly activates brain circuits involved in positive motivation. This reward-related activation is associated with a shift in attitudes and emotions that helped boost players’ adherence to prescribed chemotherapy and antibiotic treatments in a previous study. As a result, each Re-Mission 2 game is designed to boost positive emotion, increase self-efficacy, and shift attitudes toward chemotherapy. More than 120 teens and young adults with cancer collaborated with HopeLab to develop and test the Re-Mission 2 games, which are now available free online at http://www.re-mission2.org.
About Cigna
Cigna Corporation (NYSE: CI) is a global health service company dedicated to helping people improve their health, well-being and sense of security. All products and services are provided exclusively through operating subsidiaries of Cigna Corporation, including Connecticut General Life Insurance Company, Cigna Health and Life Insurance Company, Life Insurance Company of North America, Cigna Life Insurance Company of New York and their affiliates. Such products and services include an integrated suite of health services, such as medical, dental, behavioral health, pharmacy and vision care benefits, and other related products including group disability, life, and accident coverage. Cigna has sales capability in 30 countries and jurisdictions, with approximately 80 million customer relationships throughout the world. To learn more about Cigna®, including links to follow us on Facebook or Twitter, visit http://www.cigna.com.
About HopeLab
HopeLab is a non-profit organization founded in 2001 by Board Chair Pam Omidyar. HopeLab harnesses the power and appeal of technology to improve human health and well-being. HopeLab applies a research-based, customer-focused, collaborative approach to create products that positively impact health behavior. HopeLab is part of the Omidyar Group of philanthropies. For more information, please visit http://www.hopelab.org.
Kent Streeb, HopeLab, 530.908.9225, [email protected]
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