Department of Psychiatry and Behavioral Sciences, Duke University Medical Center, Durham, NC, USA.
Department of Pediatrics, Stanford University Medical Center, Stanford, CA, USA.
Support Care Cancer. 2019 Sep;27(9):3583-3592. doi: 10.1007/s00520-019-4657-z. Epub 2019 Jan 31.
Despite more women undergoing treatment for breast cancer and increased survival rates, many women suffer from anxiety and physical symptoms (e.g., pain, fatigue) surrounding diagnosis and surgery. Research investigating the efficacy of psychosocial interventions for breast cancer patients during this period is limited. This randomized controlled pilot study examined the effect of a brief lovingkindness meditation intervention on these key outcomes.
Participants were 60 women who underwent core needle breast biopsy, received an abnormal biopsy result, and underwent breast surgery (White = 73.6%; African American = 22.6%; Asian American = 3.8%; Age M = 56). Participants were randomly assigned to one of three treatment conditions at breast biopsy: (1) lovingkindness meditation, (2) music, and (3) usual care. Assessments of anxiety, pain, fatigue, physiologic reactivity, and self-compassion occurred prior to patients' biopsy, following biopsy, 1 week after receipt of biopsy results, and 1 week following breast surgery.
Multilevel modeling analyses demonstrated that lovingkindness meditation significantly improved pain (p = 0.02), self-compassion (p = 0.004), and heart rate (p = 0.02) over time compared to control conditions. There was a trend for anxiety (p = 0.05). Music significantly improved pain (p = 0.04) compared to usual care.
These findings provide preliminary evidence for the feasibility and efficacy of a lovingkindness meditation intervention for breast cancer patients during the diagnostic and surgical period. Improving psychological and physical well-being during this time frame has the potential to improve longer-term health outcomes during adjuvant treatment and survivorship. Interventions that cultivate positive adjustment during the diagnostic and surgical period of breast cancer are an important area of future research.
尽管越来越多的女性接受乳腺癌治疗且生存率提高，但许多女性在诊断和手术后仍饱受焦虑和身体症状（如疼痛、疲劳）的困扰。针对这一时期乳腺癌患者的心理社会干预效果的研究有限。本随机对照试验旨在研究短暂的仁爱冥想干预对这些关键结局的影响。
共有 60 名女性参加了研究，她们均接受了乳腺核心针活检，结果异常，并接受了乳房手术（白种人=73.6%；非裔美国人=22.6%；亚裔美国人=3.8%；年龄均数=56 岁）。在乳腺活检时，参与者被随机分配至以下三种治疗条件之一：（1）仁爱冥想，（2）音乐，和（3）常规护理。在活检前、活检后、收到活检结果 1 周后和乳房手术后 1 周时，评估参与者的焦虑、疼痛、疲劳、生理反应和自我同情。
多层线性模型分析表明，与对照组相比，仁爱冥想在时间上显著改善了疼痛（p=0.02）、自我同情（p=0.004）和心率（p=0.02）。焦虑有改善趋势（p=0.05）。音乐与常规护理相比，显著改善了疼痛（p=0.04）。
这些发现为在诊断和手术期间对乳腺癌患者进行仁爱冥想干预的可行性和有效性提供了初步证据。在这段时间内改善心理和身体健康状况，有可能改善辅助治疗和生存期间的长期健康结局。在乳腺癌诊断和手术期间培养积极适应的干预措施是未来研究的一个重要领域。
