Effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction on quality of life of breast cancer patient: A systematic review and meta-analysis.
Xiaohui Wang, Zhicheng Dai, Xinying Zhu, Yu Li, Limin Ma, Xinghui Cui, Tongxia Zhan
PLoS One 2024 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0306643 (opens in new tab)
Study at a glance
AI-extracted from the abstract| Characteristics | Systematic review and meta-analysis Randomized Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Sample size | 1,644 |
| Population | Breast cancer patients |
| Intervention | Mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy |
| Topics | Meditation |
| Citations | 36 |
| Key findings | Mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy significantly reduces negative emotions and improves coping ability and emotional state in breast cancer patients compared with standard care. |
Abstract
Breast cancer is the most common malignancy that occurs in women. Due to the pain caused by the disease itself and the adverse reactions in the treatment process, breast cancer patients are prone to anxiety, depression, fear of recurrence, and other negative emotions, which seriously affect the quality of life. As a systematic stress reduction therapy, mindfulness-based stress reduction is widely applied to the treatment of breast cancer patients and has been found by a growing number of studies to relieve stress, regulate mood, and improve the state. However, due to the absence of recent research and uniform outcome measures, previous studies have failed to fully explain the role of mindfulness-based stress reduction in improving the quality of life in breast cancer patients. We conducted a systematic review and meta-analysis to evaluate and compare the effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy and standard care on the quality of life and psychological status of breast cancer patients. We searched PubMed, Web of Science, Embase, China's National Knowledge Infrastructure and the Cochrane Central Registry of Controlled Trials up to July 2023 to identify candidate randomized clinical trials addressing the values of mindfulness-based stress reduction in breast cancer patients. A total of 1644 patients participated in 11 randomized controlled trials. The results of the meta-analysis showed that mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy can significantly reduce negative emotions such as perceived stress (MD = -1.46, 95%CI = -2.53 to -0.38, p = 0.03), depression (MD = -1.84, 95%CI = -3.99 to -0.30, p = 0.0004), anxiety (MD = -2.81, 95%CI = -5.31 to -0.32, p = 0.002), and fear of recurrence (MD = -1.27, 95%CI = -3.44 to 0.90, p = 0.0004). Mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy also has certain advantages in improving the coping ability (MD = 1.26, 95%CI = -3.23 to5.76, p = 0.03) and the emotional state (MD = -7.73, 95%CI = -27.34 to 11.88, p = 0.0007) of patients with breast cancer. Our analyses support that, compared with standard care, mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy can significantly improve patients' coping ability, reduce adverse emotions and improve patients' emotional states.
Comparable studies
Other systematic reviews and meta-analyses on meditation, most cited first.
| Study | Year | Design | Participants |
|---|---|---|---|
| Meditation Programs for Psychological Stress and Well-being Diverse adult clinical populations | 2014 | Meta-analysis | n = 3,515 |
| Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis Healthy subjects | 2009 | Systematic review and meta-analysis | |
| The psychological effects of meditation: A meta-analysis. Nonclinical groups of adult meditators | 2012 | Meta-analysis | n = 163 |
| Efficacy of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy in Prevention of Depressive Relapse Adults with recurrent depression in full or partial remission | 2016 | Meta-analysis of individual patient data from randomized controlled trials | n = 1,258 |
| Mindfulness‐Based Stress Reduction and Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy – a systematic review of randomized controlled trials | 2011 | Systematic review |
Citations in the library
Cited by 11
- The use of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) for breast cancer patients-meta-analysis. BMC Psychology November 1, 2024
- Stress, physical activity, and mindfulness practices among youth amidst COVID-19. Frontiers in Sports and Active Living 2024
- Effects of Buddhist Interventions in Their Original Context: A Meta-analysis Mindfulness March 25, 2026
- Effects of embedded micro-mindfulness on psychological symptoms in patients with advanced cancer receiving palliative care: a prospective controlled study. Frontiers in Oncology August 26, 2026
- Supporting Uptake of Mindfulness-Based Interventions for Breast Cancer Survivors: Generating Locally Relevant Estimates of Benefit Mindfulness June 1, 2026
and 6 more in the library
Cites 25
- Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction for Stress Management in Healthy People: A Review and Meta-Analysis The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine May 1, 2009
- Neural Signatures of Pain Modulation in Short-Term and Long-Term Mindfulness Training: A Randomized Active-Control Trial American Journal of Psychiatry July 28, 2022
- Effect of Heartfulness meditation based integrative therapy on infertility outcomes: A retrospective case series evaluation. Journal of Ayurveda and Integrative Medicine 2023
- Mechanisms of mindfulness in patients with migraine: Results of a qualitative study. Headache: The Journal of Head and Face Pain March 2023
- Effect of the Online Mindfulness-Based Stress Reduction on Anxiety and Depression Status of COVID-19 Patients Treated in Fangcang Hospitals: A Randomized Controlled Trial. Psychology Research and Behavior Management 2023
and 20 more in the library