Smartphone apps aimed at preventing cancer, or helping people with the disease to manage it, have the potential to improve people's health, but many of these apps have drawbacks, researchers say. In a new study, researchers reviewed 295 cancer-focused apps available in the four major smartphone platforms (iPhone, Android, Nokia and BlackBerry). They found that most apps aimed to raise awareness about cancer (32 percent of the apps), followed by apps providing educational information about cancer (nearly 13 percent), and those designed to support fundraising efforts. Fewer of the apps aimed to help people with early detection-(11.5 percent), prevention (2 percent) or management of cancer (nearly 4 percent), according to the study.

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