Skip to content

Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy for Japanese breast cancer patients-a feasibility study.

Sunre Park, Mitsuhiro Sado, Daisuke Fujisawa, Yasuko Sato, Mari Takeuchi, Akira Ninomiya, Maiko Takahashi, Kimio Yoshimura, Hiromitsu Jinno, Yuko Takeda

Japanese journal of clinical oncology January 1, 2018 DOI: 10.1093/jjco/hyx156 (opens in new tab)

Read Full Text
Relevant Not relevant

Study at a glance

AI-extracted from the abstract
Characteristics Pilot feasibility study with qualitative interviews Randomized Peer reviewed
Sample size 12
Population Japanese women diagnosed with Stage I-III breast cancer
Intervention Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT)
Duration 8 weekly sessions, with follow-up until 3 months after program completion
Measures Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) - anxiety subscale, HADS - depression subscale, Impact of Event Scale-revised, Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast Cancer (FACT-B)
Topics Anxiety Depression Meditation
Keywords Breast cancer Quality of life
Key findings MBCT was well accepted by Japanese breast cancer patients, with all 12 participants completing the program and a mean of 7.7 sessions attended. Anxiety, trauma-related symptoms, and quality of life improved significantly, while depression improved at trend level. Qualitative analyses suggested the program may help alleviate fear of cancer recurrence and increase spiritual well-being.

Abstract

Mindfulness-based intervention has been receiving growing attention in cancer care. This study aimed to examine feasibility and to preliminary explore effectiveness of mindfulness-based cognitive therapy (MBCT) in Japanese breast cancer patients, and to explore possible modification of the program so that it fits better with this population. Twelve participants with diagnosis of Stage I-III breast cancer received an eight session, weekly MBCT intervention in a group therapy format. The participants were followed up until 3 months after the completion of the program. All the participants completed the program with high attendance rate (mean number of attended sessions = 7.7). Significant improvement in anxiety (Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) - anxiety subscale; effect size Cohen's d = 0.88, P < 0.05), trauma-related psychological symptoms (Impact of Event Scale-revised; d = 0.64, P < 0.01) and quality of life (Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Breast Cancer: FACT-B; d = 0.72, P < 0.01), and trend-level improvement in depression (HADS - depression subscale; d = 0.53, P = 0.054) were observed. Qualitative analyses suggested the program may be beneficial for alleviating fear of cancer recurrence and for increasing spiritual well-being. Some recommended modification of the program was indicated from the post-intervention interviews. Mindfulness-based cognitive therapy was well accepted by Japanese breast cancer patients and yielded favorable effect on their psychological status and quality of life. Further effectiveness study in a randomized-control design is warranted.

Comparable studies

Other qualitative studies on meditation, most cited first.

Study Year Design Participants
The varieties of contemplative experience: A mixed-methods study of meditation-related challenges in Western Buddhists Western Buddhist meditation practitioners and experts in Theravāda, Zen, and Tibetan... 2017 Qualitative study with mixed-methods
The Effects of Mindfulness-based Stress Reduction on Nurse Stress and Burnout Nurses in a hospital system 2004 Implementation study with mixed methods
An exploratory mixed methods study of the acceptability and effectiveness of mindfulness -based cognitive therapy for patients with active depression and anxiety in primary care Primary care patients with recurrent depression or recurrent depression and anxiety 2006 Exploratory mixed methods study n = 13
A qualitative study of mindfulness‐based cognitive therapy for depression Participants in mindfulness-based cognitive therapy in a mental-health context 2001 Qualitative study n = 7
Effortless awareness: using real time neurofeedback to investigate correlates of posterior cingulate cortex activity in meditators' self-report Meditators 2013 Qualitative study using grounded theory methodology

Citations in the library

Cited by 10

and 5 more in the library

Cites 9

and 4 more in the library

Related reading

Explore topics

Anxiety Depression Meditation