Stress and Response to Treatment: Insights From a Pilot Study Using a 4-week Contemplative Self-Healing Meditation Intervention for Posttraumatic Stress in Breast Cancer
E. Offidani, J. Peterson, J. Loizzo, A. Moore, M. Charlson
Journal of Evidence-Based Complementary & Alternative Medicine May 17, 2017 DOI: 10.1177/2156587217708522 (opens in new tab) via Semantic Scholar
Summary
AI-generated from the abstractA 4-week Contemplative Self-Healing program reduced PTSD symptoms more in breast cancer survivors who reported chronic stress at baseline than in those who did not. PTSD symptoms were measured with the Impact of Events Scale. The pilot study suggests that evaluating chronic life stress may help identify which breast cancer patients benefit most from psychological interventions.
Study at a glance
| Characteristics | Pilot study Peer reviewed |
|---|---|
| Population | Breast cancer survivors |
| Intervention | Contemplative Self-Healing program |
| Duration | 4-week intervention |
| Keywords | Psychology Medicine |
| Key finding | Breast cancer survivors with chronic stress at baseline showed greater improvement in PTSD symptoms after the 4-week Contemplative Self-Healing program than those without chronic stress. |
Abstract
Along with symptoms of anxiety and depression, many breast cancer survivors experience symptoms of posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD) that may worsen in the setting of other stressful life events. The aim of this pilot study was to evaluate whether a 4-week version of our Contemplative Self-Healing program would have different effects in reducing PTSD symptoms between breast cancer survivors with or without chronic stress at baseline. PTSD symptoms were measured using the Impact of Events scale (IES). A linear mixed model analysis was used to evaluate within patients changes in IES score. Results showed that breast cancer patients who were experiencing chronic stress reported greater improvement in IES score than those without chronic stress. Our preliminary findings shed light on the need to evaluate life stressors in breast cancer patients. Evaluating chronic stress may be essential in predicting which cancer patients may benefit most from a psychological intervention.