Prioritizing human-centered cancer care in a digital era

Smith, Grant Matthew and Bergerot, Cristiane D. and Epstein, Andrew S. and Nelson, Judith E. and Salins, Naveen and Vasudeva, Bhat K and Lewis, Shirley and Skelton, J. Mac and Parikh, Ravi B. and Bhoo-Pathy, Nirmala and Borda, Juan and Essue, Beverley M. and Fernandez-Gonzalez, Loreto and Li, Madeline and Preston, Nancy and Shapiro, Gilla K. and Trapani, Dario and Unger-Saldaña, Karla and Walshe, Catherine and Zimmermann, Camilla and Sullivan, Richard and Rodin, Gary and Rosa, William E. (2026) Prioritizing human-centered cancer care in a digital era. eClinicalMedicine, 91: 103695. ISSN 2589-5370

Abstract

Digital health tools improve the efficiency and quality of cancer care and are poised to have an even greater impact in the future. However, the extent to which these tools will enhance both disease-centered and human-centered care depends on which values, outcomes, and processes diverse stakeholders and sectors prioritize. Human-centered care recognizes the uniqueness and inherent value of individuals and values the inimitability of human relationships. In this Viewpoint, we call for prioritization of human-centered care in the design and implementation of digital health tools. After summarizing key ethical frameworks, we provide examples of digital innovations from Brazil, India, and the United States that demonstrate how choices in design, implementation, and evaluation can enhance human-centered care provision. In addition, we provide recommendations to support clinicians, researchers, and health systems in prioritizing human-centered care, including the involvement of patients, caregivers, and communities in all phases of design and implementation. Funding No funding was used in the creation of this manuscript. WER, ASE, and JEN are partially supported by the NIH/National Cancer Institute comprehensive cancer center award P30 CA008748. WER is supported by the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation Harold Amos Medical Faculty Development Program.