Product
LUVRE App
Company:
Leiden University Medical center
Timeline
2025
Duration:
3 months
Role
UX Designer - Researcher
Innovation
We rebuilt VR therapy from the ground up for people often left behind by tech. We removed complex interactions and designed a calming experience that worked with one hand, even in a post-surgery hospital bed. By focusing on comfort, autonomy, and ease of use, we made immersive recovery accessible for older lung cancer patients at home and in clinical care.
Overview
Lung cancer patients often face intense pain after thoracic surgery, leading to heavy reliance on pain medication. The LUVRE app offers a non-pharmacological alternative through a VR app that immerses patients in 360-degree nature scenes, calming music, and guided breathing exercises to ease discomfort and promote relaxation.
Problem
The original LUVRE app was difficult to navigate for patients aged 60 and above, relying on complex hand gestures and a tech-heavy interface. It also ignored the physical context of post-surgery use, leading to a painful and frustrating experience that limited patient autonomy and the ability to self-manage care.
Solution
I designed a user-centered VR experience tailored to the physical and cognitive needs of older patients. The app uses simple one-hand gestures, familiar interaction patterns, and multimodal feedback within a clean interface. This made navigation intuitive and recovery more autonomous, enabling patients to comfortably engage, relax, and manage their care.
Research
I began with contextual research to understand how the app was used in real clinical settings. I interviewed key stakeholders including surgeons and clinical technologists to gather insights into their goals, frustrations, and level of digital literacy. These conversations helped me form a clear user persona that captured their motivations, pain points, and familiarity with VR tools.
I then evaluated the existing product to identify friction points in navigation and task flow. This helped me pinpoint areas where users struggled or felt overwhelmed. The findings from both interviews and product analysis guided my redesign approach, with a focus on simplifying the experience and reducing cognitive load.
Key insights from research:
Patients needed simpler, faster, more intuitive navigation
Most patients had no prior experience with VR, which affected ease of use
Complex menus and unclear feedback made it difficult to complete tasks confidently
Patients valued clarity, speed, and minimal distraction during interactions
These insights made it clear that the app needed to be redesigned for simplicity, ease of learning, and better alignment with the realities of patient environments.
Design
I developed an MVP-ready prototype in collaboration with VR developers at LUMC. The improved interface and simplified navigation* made the app more accessible and intuitive, empowering patients to use it independently at home after discharge. This shift supported greater autonomy, faster recovery, and better health outcomes.
* The user flow for this project is under a non-disclosure agreement and cannot be shared. Interface elements shown here have been simplified to respect confidentiality during the MVP stage.
What I did and why it matters?
I redesigned the LUVRE app experience with aging lung cancer patients in mind, simplifying navigation, rethinking interaction patterns, and tailoring it to real-world use in both hospital and home settings. By making the app intuitive and comfortable, I helped turn a high-tech therapy into something patients could truly use and benefit from. This shift gave them more control over their recovery, reduced reliance on medication, and brought care closer to their everyday lives.
Reflections
While VR expands what's possible in care, it should never replace the human connection between patient and caregiver. The real value lies in supporting recovery and autonomy without letting technology become a barrier. Striking the right balance between innovation and empathy is key to creating meaningful impact.
