The effectiveness of cognitive behavioral therapy in women with gynecological cancer: A systematic review and meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials.

OBJECTIVE

This study aimed to perform a meta-analysis of randomized control trials to evaluate the effects of cognitive behavioral therapy on depression, anxiety, fatigue, distress, the fear of cancer recurrence, and the quality of life in gynecological cancer patients.

METHODS

An extensive literature search of PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus, and CINAHL was performed, and a meta-analysis was conducted on ten studies that included 1027 patients. The quality of the data was evaluated using the Cochrane Risk of Bias tool. The effect size of the mean difference and standardized mean difference were computed using Revman 5.4.1.

RESULTS

Gynecological cancer patients receiving cognitive behavioral therapy showed decreases in depression ( < 0.001), anxiety ( = 0.01), fatigue ( < 0.001), distress ( = 0.03), and the fear of cancer recurrence ( = 0.01) compared to those receiving no treatment, whereas no improvement in quality of life was seen in the cognitive behavioral therapy group ( = 0.05).

CONCLUSIONS

Cognitive behavioral therapy was shown to be a useful treatment for the symptoms experienced by women with gynecological cancer, with significant effect sizes. However, more research is required to validate the efficacy of cognitive behavioral therapy in patients with gynecological cancer, considering the limitations of this study's small sample size and statistical heterogeneity.

SYSTEMATIC REVIEW REGISTRATION

PROSPERO- CRD42024516039.