The Impact of an Interactive Computer Game on the Quality of Life of Children Undergoing Chemotherapy

BACKGROUND: Quality of life (QOL) of children with cancer reduces right from the diagnosis of disease and the start of treatment. Computer games in medicine are utilized to interact with patients and to improve their health-related behaviors. This study aimed to investigate the effect of an interactive computer game on the QOL of children undergoing chemotherapy. MATERIALS AND METHODS: In this clinical trial, 64 children with cancer aged between 8 and12 years were selected through convenience sampling and randomly assigned to experimental or control group. The experimental group played a computer game for 3 hours a week for 4 consecutive weeks and the control group only received routine care. The data collection tool was the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL) 3.0 Cancer Module Child self-report designed for children aged between 8 to 12 years. Data were analyzed using descriptive and inferential statistics in SPSS software. RESULTS: Before intervention, there was no significant difference between the two groups in terms of mean total QOL score (p = 0.87). However, immediately after the intervention (p = 0.02) and 1 month after the intervention (p < 0.001), the overall mean QOL score was significantly higher in the intervention group than the control group. CONCLUSIONS: Based on the findings, computer games seem to be effective as a tool in influencing health-related behavior and improving the QOL of children undergoing chemotherapy. Therefore, according to the findings of this study, computer games can be used to improve the QOL of children undergoing chemotherapy.