Relaxation techniques can also reduce tension, depression and anxiety, yet few cancer treatment programs use these techniques on a regular basis.
Relaxation techniques learned prior to undergoing cancer treatment proved more effective at reducing anxiety than techniques taught while the patient was undergoing aggressive treatment to eradicate or slow the cancer, says lead study author Karin Luebbert of the University Hospital Hamburg.
Teaching relaxation techniques involves very little of a professional’s time -- usually less than two hours -- making the intervention inexpensive, according to the study published in the February issue of Psycho-Oncology.
Relaxation techniques may help patients achieve a physical restfulness that reduces their anxiety and reactivity to unpleasant stimuli. The muscular relaxation that results from these techniques may also ease the physiological cascade that leads to nausea and vomiting, the authors say.
Besides some of the documented emotional benefits of relaxation training, these techniques may also help patients feel more in control of their treatment, especially if they are encouraged to practice on their own, they say. Cancer patients can often feel helpless and hopeless “Relaxation affords an active coping strategy for them.”
Twelve types of side effects commonly associated with cancer treatment were addressed in the review. These included four treatment-related symptoms, namely nausea, pain, blood pressure, and pulse rate; and eight emotional adjustment issues: anxiety, depression hostility, tension, fatigue, confusion, vigor and overall mood. Investigators also evaluated a broad variety of interventions, including type of relaxation training, the time professionals spent teaching the technique and how often relaxation was done.
Relaxation therapy eased symptoms of anxiety more than it did any other side effect, regardless of the type of cancer treatment given the patient.
The study was funded with a grant from the Deutsche Forschungsgemeinshaft.
Psycho-Oncology is a bimonthly international journal devoted to the psychological, social and behavioral dimensions of cancer. Published by John Wiley, it is the official journal of the American, British and International Psycho-Oncology Societies. Contact Jimmie Holland, M.D., Co-Editor, at (212) 739-7051 for information.
Journal
Psycho-Oncology