Table 3.

A summary of findings on included studies’ origin, publication year, study design, study participants, patient outcomes, patient adherence, findings and quality assessment score

Author (year)	Country	Study design	Study participants	Patient outcomes and measurements	Patient adherence to eHealth interventions	Findings	MMAT score/maximum score
Avci et al. 2018) [26]	Turkey	Quasi-experimental study	Patients receiving adjuvant treatments Age (mean) Intervention group (IG): 59.0 ± 11.5 Control group (CG): 61.6 ± 12.3 Male IG: 75% CG: 68%	Chemotherapy symptoms Anxiety Primary outcome (PO) not stated	Adherence not addressed	The IG experienced significantly less frequently chemotherapy side effects compared with the CG (p = < .05), and fewer severe side effects of infection, hair loss, and mouth and throat problems (p = < .05). Anxiety decreased significantly in the IG compared with controls (p = > .001)	4/6
Barsom et al. 2021) [27]	The Netherlands	Observational study	Patients at outpatient clinic follow-upAge (mean) IG: 68 (SD=57-74) CG: 61 (SD=53-69) Male IG: 39% CG: 52%	Patient attitudes towards video consultations (VC) Patients’ reporting of usability Patient satisfaction with interaction with healthcare provider Provider satisfaction with the consultation PO not stated	Adherence not addressed	VC-group expressed highly positive attitude in using VC. Face to face-group (F2F) was less concerned with privacy issues. 96% in the VC-group and 38% in the F2F-group would like to use VC in the future. VC-group reported VC easy to use and convenient and would not change to F2F consultations. Usability of VC was rated as excellent by 67%, and good by 33%.	5/6
Beaver et al. 2021) [28]	England	Randomised controlled trial (RCT)	Patients at completion of treatmentAge (mean) IG: 72.4 ± 8.2 CG: 73.6 ± 7.6 Male IG: 64% CG: 52%	Anxiety (PO) General health (PO) Satisfaction with information (PO) Clinical investigations ordered Time to detection of recurrent disease Costs to patients	Adherence not addressed	The telephone intervention decreased anxiety levels. Considerable fewer information needs were raised by the controls at follow-up, compared with intervention participants (16 vs. 30). Intervention participants were more satisfied with the latest appointment. There was no difference between groups concerning contact with healthcare services during the study. The telephone appointments lasted significantly longer (p=.001), (29 vs.14 minutes).	4/7
Cheong et al. 2018) [29]	South Korea	Observational study	Patients receiving adjuvant treatments Age (mean): 58.27 ± 11.74 Male: 59%	Physical activity (PA) Nutritional status Quality of life (QOL) Physical performance Distress PO not stated	Adherence addressed as the number/percentage of patients who completed the program	Lower extremity strength (p<0.001) and cardiorespiratory endurance (p<0.001) improved. Fatigue (p=0.007) and nausea/vomiting (p=0.04) were relieved.	5/6
Dong et al. (2019) [30]	China	RCT	Patients receiving adjuvant treatments Age (mean) Total sample: 59.09 ± 8.07 Male IG (telephone-based reminiscence (TBR) group): 53% Female IG (telephone-support (TS) groups): 53% CG: 51%	Anxiety Subjective well-being Social support PO not stated	Adherence not addressed	SDS and HAMD scores decreased significantly in the TBR group, but not in the CG and TS groups (p<0.05); however, no significant post-intervention scores between TS and TBR groups were found. Neither TS nor TBR improved subjective well-being of social support.	7/7
Drott et al. (2016) [31]	Sweden	Qualitative study	Patients post-adjuvant treatments Age (median, range): 65 (44-68) 4 men and 7 women	Patients’ experiences of using the mobile phone-based system for reporting neurotoxic side effects	Not applicable	The patients’ experiences were identified as (1) being involved, (2) pacing oneself and (3) managing questions. The mobile phone-based system reinforced patients’ feelings of involvement in own care. They were comfortable with the technology and the system was not time consuming.	7/7
Drott et al. (2019) [32]	Sweden	Prospective longitudinal study	Patients receiving adjuvant treatments Age (mean): 61.0 (SD=10) Male: 61%	Severity, frequency and impact of oxaliplatin-associated neurotoxicityPO not stated	Adherence addressed as the response rate to symptom surveys	All patients reported side effects, and severe impact from side effects on daily living activities, with tingling in upper extremities as the most reported. Neurotoxicity symptoms changed significantly from baseline to follow-up in both upper (p=.004–.031) and lower extremities (.008–.016).	5/6
Drott et al. (2020) [33]	Sweden	Prospective descriptive cohort study	Patients receiving adjuvant treatments Age (mean): 62.0 (SD=8) Male: 63%	Sense of coherence (SOC) Health-related quality of life (HRQoL) Severity, frequency, and impact of oxaliplatin-associated neurotoxicity PO not stated	Adherence addressed as the response rate to symptom surveys	Neurotoxicity as described in Drott (2018). SOC and overall HRQoL was stable but decrease of social well-being after 1-year follow-up. p values not reported.	5/6
Döking et al. (2021) [34]	AustraliaThe Netherlands	Case study	Patient at completion of treatment Age: 74 Male	Psychological distress (PO) Anxiety Fatigue Fear of cancer recurrence Cancer-specific distress Self-efficacy QOL Therapeutic alliance Intervention evaluation	Adherence not addressed	The treatment protocol appeared feasible. Psychological distress showed improved postintervention, while anxiety and cancer-specific distress remained improved during follow-ups. Therapeutic alliance and patient satisfaction were high. Combining face-to-face and online intervention may reduce distress of cancer survivors.	Not screened
Golsteijn et al. (2018) [35]	The Netherlands	RCT	Patients 6 weeks–1-year post-surgery Age (mean) IG: 66.55 (SD=7.07) CG: 66.38 (SD=8.21) Male IG: 85% CG: 89%	Physical activity (PA) behaviour (PO) Fatigue HRQoL Distress	Adherence addressed as minutes of moderate-to-vigorous PA and number of days with 30 minutes or more of PA	Both moderate-to-vigorous PA and days ≥30-min PA increased significantly in the intervention group (p =.04 and p < .001, respectively). Among secondary outcomes, fatigue and physical functioning improved significantly (p = .02 and p = .003, respectively). No significant improvement of HRQoL were found. Effects were stronger in CRC patients as compared to prostate cancer patients.	6/7
Grimmett et al. (2015) [36]	United Kingdom	Feasibility study	CRC patient at completion of treatment Age (median, range): 65 (44–79) Female: 62%	PA Diet consumption QOL Fatigue Physical function PO not stated	Acceptability and adherence to counselling sessions Eighteen patients completed all scheduled phone consultations, while five missed one consultation	Significant improvements in objectively measured activity +70 min/pr week (p=.004/7) and step counts pr day (p=.001). Gains in diet: +3, fruit and vegetable portions a day, (p<.001), red meat a week (p =.013), and portions of processed meat a week (p= .002). Change in serum vitamin levels were was not significant. Significant improvement in quality of life (p<.001). Patient experiences: patient evaluated phone conversations as mode for iv delivery positive. Several remarked that it was convenient not to have travel. Face to face contact was valued at baseline. Timing of intervention in relation to completion of treatment was considered appropriate. The intervention was considered a helpful and useful exercise.	5/6
Kim et al. (2018) [37]	Korea	Quasi-experimental study	Patients at completion of primary surgery Age (mean) Total sample: 61 (SD=10) Male IG: 64% CG: 58%	QOL (PO) Affective status Depression Self-efficacy Individual resilience	Adherence not addressed	Significant improvement in the IG compared to the CG. Quality of life (p=0.0017) Physical status (p=0.016) Affective status (p=0.0051) Anxiety (p=0.0007) Depression (p=0.0003) Self-efficacy (p=0.0075)	5/6
Li et al. (2019) [38]	China	RCT	Patients receiving adjuvant treatments Age (mean) IG: 60.06 ±11.00 CG: 58.47 ±12.52 Male IG: 66% CG: 61%	Anxiety Depression QOL PO not stated	Adherence not addressed	IG slightly decreased the anxiety grade at M6 compared to the CG (p=0.070). The IG had a sig. improvement in depression score M6 versus M0 (p<0.001), and the depression grad was reduced in the IG compared to controls (p=0.037). QoL, global health status, at M6 versus M0 was increased (p=0.0035) and QoL symptom score at M6 versus M0 was decreased (P=0.002) in IG versus CG. No difference in QoL, function score, between the groups. Patients in IG had a slight decrease in anxiety and contributed to a significant. reduction in depression and improvement in QoL in CRC patients receiving adjuvant chemotherapy.	5/7
Lin et al. (2014) [39]	Taiwan	Retrospective quantitative study	Patients undergoing treatment Mean/median age not reported Patients’ gender not reported	Patient satisfaction (PO)	Not applicable	43% of the callers were the patients themselves and 37% were the primary caregivers. Some patients called more than once regarding the same condition. Issues: need for emergency treatment (29%), nutrition (21%), chemo side effects (19%), pain (15%). Average calls made by each subject: 0.87 times. Female callers: 66.6% and 43.4% of the calls came on daytime. Average satisfaction level of each question: 90%. Overall satisfaction level: 93%	4/7
Lynch et al. (2014) [40]	Australia	RCT	Patients undergoing treatments (76%) Age: 74% > 60 years Male: 54%	Sedentary behaviour (PO)	Adherence addressed as the percentage of telephone sessions completed	The health coaching intervention showed modest effects on sedentary behaviour. A significant effect on total sedentary time (hours/day) at 12 months was found in CRC survivors aged >60 years, male survivors and in the non-obese.	5/7
Mancini et al. (2021) [41]	Italy	Prospective observational study	Patients at completion of primary surgery Age (median, range): 68 (48–84) Male: 50%	Intervention feasibility and safety (PO) Patient satisfaction	Adherence not addressed	Compliance of patients was > 80%. Overall grade of satisfaction was very high with 4.2 as median (range 0–5). Only two patients were readmitted for surgical consult.	7/7
Mayer et al. (2018) [42]	USA	RCT	Patients at completion of treatment Age (mean) IG: 57.84 (SD=14.5) CG: 59.34 (SD=13.7) Female IG: 51% CG: 52%	PA (PO) Distress QOL	Adherence addressed by defining ‘active users’ of the smartphone application (i.e. creating content or entering or revising data)	No significant differences in PA between the IG and the CG were detected at any timepoint. Both groups went from inactive to moderately active at 6 and 9 months. QoL and distress did not show any significant change over time or between the groups. Both groups reported more physical problems followed by emotional problems.	6/7
Pinto et al. (2013) [43]	USA	RCT	Patients at completion of treatment Age (mean) IG: 59.5 (SD=11.2) CG: 55.6 (8.2) Female 57%	PA Treatment symptoms PO not stated	Adherence not addressed	IG reported significant increases in PA minutes and motivational readiness for PA at 3 months, caloric expenditure, and fitness at 3, 6 and 12 months versus the CG. No significant group differences were found for fatigue, self-reported physical functioning, and quality of life at 3, 6 and 12 months.	5/7
Qaderi et al. (2021) [44]	The Netherlands	Descriptive longitudinal study	Patients at completion of treatment Age (median): 68 (range 63–74) Male 58%	QoL Fear of recurrence Patient satisfaction PO not stated	Adherence addressed as active participation rates	Eighty-three percent of participants reported good, very good or excellent health status. Patient satisfaction at 6 and 12 months scored 7.8 and 7.5 out of 10. After 1 year of follow-up, patients reported advantages of less hospital visits, saved cost and time, increased efficiency and convenience, better access to care and enhanced communication. Disadvantages were loss of human contact and interactive care, and increased threshold to seek help.	5/6
Soh et al. (2018) [45]	Korea	Prospective descriptive study	CRC patients receiving adjuvant treatments Age group In their fifties: 36% Male 63%	Patient satisfaction (PO) QOL	Adherence not addressed	Overall satisfaction rate among subjects was favourable and ranged from 3.93 (SD 0.88) to 4.01 (SD 0.87) on the 5-point Likert scale. ‘Warming-up exercise’ was the most frequently education view. The online survey completion rate was over 40%, and 80% completed the offline survey	7/7
Van Blarigan et al. (2019) [46]	USA	RCT	Patients at completion of treatment Age (mean) IG: 56 ± 12 CG: 54 ± 11 Male 41%	Feasibility and acceptability PA PO not stated	Adherence addressed as Fitbit wear time, response rates to interactive text messages and proportion of participants who completed the 12-week follow-up accelerometer assessment	Among the 16 intervention participants who completed the feedback survey, the majority (88%) reported that the intervention motivated them to exercise and that they were satisfied with their experience. No statistically significant difference in change in moderate-to-vigorous physical activity was found from baseline to 12 weeks between the IG and CG.	6/7
Van der Hout et al. (2020) [47]	The Netherlands	RCT	Patients at completion of treatment Age not reported Gender not reported	Self-management HRQoL PO not stated	Adherence not addressed	Oncokompas did not improve the amount of knowledge, skills and confidence for self-management in cancer survivors. For CRC patients, the course of the symptom weight was significantly different between the intervention and control group (p = 0.028).	5/7
Van der Hout et al. (2021) [48]	The Netherlands	RCT	Patients at completion of treatment Age not reported Gender not reported	Patient activation (PO) HRQoL Self-efficacy	Adherence not addressed	Self-efficacy, personal control and health literacy moderated the intervention Oncokompas’ effects on HRQoL (p=.034, p=.015 and p=. o35, respectively)	5/7
Vos et al. (2021) [49]	The Netherlands	RCT	Patients receiving surgical treatment Age (median, range) GP-led group IG: 67 (63-72) CG: 69 (63-75) Surgeon-led group IG: 68 (63-74) CG: 69 (63-75) Male GP-led group IG: 75% CG: 64% Surgeon-led group IG: 63% CG: 67%	QOL (PO) Care coordination Cancer recurrence Self-management Patent satisfaction	Adherence addressed as application use Thirty-six per cent of participants in the Oncokompas group used the app at least once	QoL weas high in all trial groups. At 12 months, there was not clinically meaningful difference in change from baseline in QoL between GP-Led care groups and the surgeon-led care groups or between the Oncokompas and no Oncokompas groups (p > .05).	6/7
Williamson et al. (2015) [50]	United Kingdom	Qualitative study	Patients at completion of treatment Age >60 years: 71.4% Male 57%	Patients’ experience with the delivery of the intervention and preference for future technology use	Not applicable	TFU was described as a positive experience and there was a preference for continuing TFU	7/7
Young et al. (2013) [51]	Australia	RCT	Patients receiving surgical treatment Age (Mean, SD) IG: 68.6 (12.2) CG: 67.0 (12.1) Male IG: 57% CG: 54%	Distress Experience of cancer care and supportive care needs Fatigue Patient satisfaction Readmissions PO not stated	Adherence addressed as intervention fidelity based on the proportion of completed calls reported for each time point Call length reported for each time point	There were no significant differences between groups in unmet supportive care needs, emergency department visits or unplanned hospital readmission at 1 month (p = > .05). There were no significant differences in experience of care coordination, distress or QoL between groups at any follow-up time point (p = > .05). Patient experiences Quantitative responses (n=350) about the CONNECT nurse and iv were generally positive.	7/7