Chatbot 'Penny' aims to reconnect cancer survivors with life-saving follow-up care
NCT ID NCT05863702
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested a chatbot named Penny that sends text messages to help adult survivors of childhood or young adult cancers schedule follow-up appointments, lab work, and scans. The goal was to see if survivors who had not been to a clinic in over three years would use the chatbot to reengage with care. Fifty-three survivors participated, and researchers tracked how many scheduled and kept their appointments over 16 weeks.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- chatbot (Penny)
- What this could lead to
- If successful, this chatbot could help more cancer survivors get the long-term follow-up care they need, potentially improving their health outcomes.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small feasibility study with only 53 participants, so results may not apply to everyone. The chatbot relies on text messaging, which may not work for all survivors.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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53 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Sep 2023
- Finished
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Oct 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Adult patient (age \> 18 years), male or female, diagnosed with cancer as a child or as a young adult, between birth and 39 years of age * Patient possession of a mobile device that can receive SMS texts * Ability to respond to questions and engage with "Penny" in English * Ability to provide informed consent to participate in the study * Approval of the patient's oncology care team for the patient to be involved in the study Exclusion Criteria: * Anyone who does not meet the inclusion criteria * Patients with a history of thyroid cancer or skin cancers
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
Abramson Cancer Center of the University of Pennsylvania
Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 19104, United States
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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