Ground-breaking Re-Mission Video Game Helps Teens Fight Their Cancer
BLOOMFIELD, Conn. and REDWOOD CITY, Calif., May 30, 2007
/PRNewswire-FirstCall/ -- CIGNA HealthCare is teaming up with the
non-profit organization HopeLab to deliver innovative interventions that
improve the health and quality of life of young people with chronic
illnesses. Their first joint initiative is to help address the needs of
teens and young adults with cancer by offering free of charge HopeLab's
ground-breaking Re-Mission(TM) video game, at http://www.CIGNA.com/re-mission.
"Re-Mission works. It gives young people with cancer a sense of power
and control over their disease," said HopeLab president Pat Christen.
"Re-Mission is a powerful example of how rigorous research and rational
engineering combined with fun, engaging game technology can improve lives.
Teaming up with CIGNA HealthCare provides a great opportunity to get
Re-Mission into the hands of clinicians and patients who can benefit most."
"Teenaged cancer patients present special treatment challenges," said
Gary Dahl, MD, pediatric oncologist at Lucile Packard Children's Hospital
at Stanford University and a principal investigator for the Re-Mission
Outcomes Study. "The Re-Mission video game is an important tool to help
improve their understanding of cancer, its treatments and effects, which
can result in more confidence in their ability to deal with the disease and
more consistent compliance with their treatment."
According to CIGNA HealthCare Medical Director, Dr. Glenn Pomerantz:
"As one of the nation's largest disease management facilities, we know that
behavior is a key contributor to health. HopeLab's Re-Mission has
demonstrated that video games have the power to help teenagers better
adhere to their cancer treatment and embrace key behaviors that improve
their health and quality of life.
"We're pleased to be making Re-Mission available more broadly and are
looking forward to working with HopeLab as they research and develop
additional solutions to help young patients with other chronic conditions."
Research Validates Cancer-Fighting Results
HopeLab validated the benefits of their cancer-fighting video game by
conducting a randomized, controlled trial with 375 male and female cancer
patients aged 13 - 29, enrolled at 34 medical centers in the U.S., Canada
and Australia. Preliminary study results, which were first presented in
March of 2006 at peer-reviewed scientific meetings, indicate that playing
Re-Mission produced increases in quality of life, self-efficacy and
cancer-related knowledge for adolescents and young adults with cancer. In
addition, young people who played Re-Mission maintained higher blood levels
of chemotherapy and showed higher rates of antibiotic utilization than
those in the control group, indicating that Re-Mission helps patients
adhere to cancer therapy regimens.
Re-Mission was developed by HopeLab through a collaborative process
that included video game developers and animators, cancer experts, cell
biologists, psychologists, and young people with cancer themselves.
Re-Mission's 20 levels of game-play combine scientific accuracy with an
honest depiction of young people's challenges with cancer.
The game is a challenging, 3-D "shooter" with 20 levels of game play,
in which players control a nanobot named Roxxi as she travels through the
bodies of fictional cancer patients to destroy cancer cells, battle
bacterial infections, and manage side effects associated with cancer and
cancer treatments. The game is designed to be cool and fun to appeal to its
target audience, while helping players understand the importance of
treatment adherence and key behaviors that can improve their health and
quality of life. The game is rated "T" for young people age 13 and up by
the Entertainment Software Rating Board (ESRB).
Available in CD and DVD formats for PC computers, CIGNA HealthCare
members, contracted health care providers and members of the general public
may order the game at no charge from the company's flagship public Website
http://www.CIGNA.com/re-mission.
About HopeLab
HopeLab is a non-profit organization that combines rigorous research
with innovative solutions to improve the health and quality of life of
young people with chronic illness. HopeLab works closely with young people
to incorporate their critical and ongoing input into product development.
HopeLab is committed to the rigorous study of its interventions to ensure
that its products and approaches are effective. HopeLab's first product is
Re-Mission, a video game for young people with cancer. In addition to
cancer, HopeLab's areas of focus include obesity, sickle cell disease,
autism and major depressive disorder. For more information, visit
http://www.hopelab.org.
About CIGNA HealthCare
CIGNA HealthCare, based in Bloomfield, CT, provides medical benefits
plans, dental coverage, behavioral health coverage, pharmacy benefits and
products and services that integrate and analyze information to support
consumerism and health advocacy. "CIGNA HealthCare" refers to certain
operations of Connecticut General Life Insurance Company, which is an
operating subsidiary of CIGNA Corporation (NYSE: CI). Products and services
are provided by such operating subsidiaries and not by CIGNA Corporation.
SOURCE CIGNA HealthCare
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Related links:
http://www.CIGNA.com/re-mission
http://www.hopelab.org
http://www.prnewswire.com/comp/165050.html /
CONTACT:
Joseph Mondy of CIGNA HealthCare
+1-860-226-5499, joseph.mondy@cigna.com; or Richard Tate of
HopeLab, +1-650-569-5907, rtate@hopelab.org
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