Examining the Benefits of Digitally Selectable Meals Called "A La Carte Digital-Select" in Cancer Chemotherapy Patients

We explored the benefits of a digitized bedside terminal with a touchscreen for selectable hospital meals called "a la carte digital-select" in cancer chemotherapy patients. The subjects used "a la carte digital-select" for 35 days. from November to December 2015. On average, 253 (between 196 and 288) patients accessed this system per day, and 40 patients used it daily (15.9%). Subjects included 75 patients (cancer chemotherapy: chem-digital-select patients. female: 47) and 12 patients (concurrent chemo radiotherapy: CRT-digital-select patients, female: 6) with a repeat rate of 87% (65) and 100% (12). The average length of hospital stay in chem-digital-select patients was 6 days (1-35). the average number of days using "a la carte digital-select" was 3days (1-24): a correlation was observed between these factors (r = .80; P <.01). The eating rate of chemotherapy patients and CRT-digital-select patients was high (81%, 81%). and no differences were observed between the rate in the cisplatin group (80%) with 28 patients, the non-cisplatin group (81%) with 47 patients, CRT-digital-select patients (81%) with 12 patients (P = .59; ANOVA). Registered dietitians provided no nutritional intervention in any of the cases. We found that "A la carte digital-select" can contribute to supporting cancer chemotherapy and the dietary needs of cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy.