Nonprofit organization HopeLab joined forces with game developers, cancer experts, psychologists, cell biologists and patients to create a game that could education and entertain young cancer patients. The result? Re-Mission, a shooting game starring Roxxi the nanobot who destroys cancerous cells and deals with treatment side effects. While young patients might be old enough to be responsible for their treatment says Reuters, they might not fully understand how deadly it is to skip medications — which often make them feel ill, cause their hair to fall out or lead to acne.

A controlled trial tested had 375 cancer patients aged 13 to 29 played the game in medical centers in the US, Canada and Australia. The results? The game seems to be working. Playing it has apparently increased patients' quality of life, knowledge of cancer and even encourage players to stick with their therapy. Says pediatric oncologist at Stanford University's Dr. Gary Dahl,

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.

Next up, HopeLab plans to take on obesity through gaming. Hope they look to Burgertime for inspiration! Brian Ashcraft

Fighting Cancer With Gaming [Reuters]