AppliedVR and the National Cancer Institute Collaborate to Evaluate Virtual Reality as a Solution to Help Address Cancer-Related Anxiety

Study to examine effectiveness of the digital therapeutic among neuro-oncology patients

LOS ANGELES–(BUSINESS WIRE)–#digitalhealth–AppliedVR today announced a collaboration with the National Cancer Institute (NCI), part of the National Institutes of Health (NIH). Under a Collaboration Agreement, the parties will evaluate virtual reality (VR) as a solution to help address the underlying anxiety often experienced by many patients with terminal cancer. The study, which is being led by the Neuro-Oncology Branch (NOB), Center for Cancer Research (CCR), NCI, will enroll patients from many NCI-designated cancer centers and other cancer practices.

“Virtual reality therapeutics are an effective and non-pharmacologic way to potentially treat anxiety, acute and chronic pain and many other mental and behavioral health conditions,” said Dr. Beth Darnall, chief science advisor of AppliedVR. “Pairing our technology and deep expertise in therapeutic VR development and design with NCI’s leading expertise in oncology could offer a specialized solution to cancer patients who suffer from anxiety.”

With anxiety being one of the most common psychological problems among cancer patients,¹ extreme stress as a result of the initial cancer diagnosis can negatively result in a patient’s inability to function in their normal life.² The proof-of-concept study will evaluate AppliedVR’s virtual reality system on neuro-oncology patients’ “scanxiety,” a term used to describe the anxiety patients with cancer experience before or after medical diagnostics scans. NCI will provide clinical expertise related to the care and management of patients with central nervous system tumors, and collect biospecimens and patient outcomes reports to perform correlative studies as companion work to the feasibility study.

“We firmly believe virtual reality therapeutics have the potential to positively impact the lives of millions of people,” said Matthew Stoudt, cofounder and chief executive officer of AppliedVR. “Results of this study could further demonstrate virtual reality as a promising modality for other serious health conditions, and specifically amplify the importance of virtual reality treatments for behavioral health conditions.”

If outcomes of the Phase 1 study are positive, AppliedVR and NCI will collaborate on a Phase 2, multi-site study to assess the use of AppliedVR’s virtual reality headsets to treat anxiety in a brain tumor patient population.

About AppliedVR

AppliedVR is pioneering the next generation of digital medicines to deliver safe and effective virtual reality therapeutics (VRx) that address unmet needs and improve clinical outcomes for patients with serious health conditions. Its evidence-based, non-invasive treatments immerse and engage patients to help drive measurable clinical outcomes. As the most widely used and deeply researched therapeutic VR platform, AppliedVR is the first company to make VR therapeutics widely available in clinical care, having immersed more than 30,000 patients in VR in over 200 hospitals. AppliedVR has established world-class research and commercial partnerships and continues to build the infrastructure to accelerate the mass adoption of VRx. To learn more about AppliedVR, Inc., visit: https://appliedvr.io/

[1] https://www.mascc.org/assets/Pain_Center/2014_February/feb_2014-6.pdf

[2] https://jamanetwork.com/journals/jamaoncology/fullarticle/2613413

Contacts

Media:
May Xiong, W2O Group

612.808.5799

mxiong@w2ogroup.com