The increase in life expectancy in recent years — together with technical, diagnostic and therapeutic advances in medicine and the progressive aging of the population — is mainly responsible for the rising incidence of chronic disabling and oncological diseases. All of these conditions eventually lead the patient toward an irreversible terminal situation and, finally, to death.
From hospice philosophy to global standard
Palliative care was initially developed in England as a hospice philosophy. In 1990, the World Health Organization adopted the general title of palliative care, defining it as the active, total care of patients whose disease no longer responds to curative treatment, with the aim of achieving the best possible quality of life for patients and their families.
Active and total care of diseases that have no response to curative treatment, in order to achieve the best quality of life possible by controlling the physical-psychological symptoms and the spiritual and social needs of patients.
World Health Organization, 1990
What the Sloan-Kettering study set out to prove
“It is cheap, comfortable, non-invasive, and free of side effects — and highly appreciated by patients.” Those are some of the benefits of massage in relieving the symptoms of cancer patients, according to researchers at the Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in the United States. A study conducted at the center went on to confirm the effectiveness of the method.
The truth is that massage is increasingly used to alleviate the symptoms of cancer patients. Until now, however, it had only been evaluated in small studies with few participants — half a hundred, a score, or in one case only six. “This is the largest study on massage in cancer patients,” said the authors of the new research.
For the study, the authors reviewed data from about 1,300 patients who underwent this therapy between April 2000 and March 2003. The patients — both those hospitalized and those treated at the center — filled out a questionnaire about their levels of pain, anxiety, fatigue and other symptoms before and after their sessions.
Massage therapies lead to large, immediate improvements in the symptoms of oncology patients — even in those with very high initial levels of pain, anxiety or other symptoms.
Journal of Pain and Symptom Management
The results
Participants were seen to experience a 45% improvement in their pain — even among the 244 patients who suffered the most discomfort. In the case of anxiety, the improvements were always close to 60%, regardless of the patient’s initial state.
The experts also decided to assess whether the positive effects of manual therapy were maintained over time. To do this, some of the participants were interviewed several times during the two days following their session.
Among admitted patients, the effect did not seem to be maintained — they were subject to more interventions (medical procedures, changes of medication, and so on), and the sessions they received were shorter: twenty minutes, compared to an hour. Among outpatients, however, the effects of the therapy were kept far longer. Moreover, there is no evidence that their symptoms regressed to their initial values.
The study at a glance
- About 1,300 patients reviewed, April 2000 – March 2003 — the largest study of its kind.
- Pain improved 45%, even among the 244 patients in most discomfort.
- Anxiety improved close to 60%, regardless of initial state.
- Outpatients (hour-long sessions) held their gains; inpatients (20-minute sessions, more interventions) did not.
The conclusion
In the meantime, one thing is clear: massage achieves significant reductions in the pain, fatigue, nausea, anxiety and depression of cancer patients.
Massage therapy seems to be a noninvasive and inexpensive way to control symptoms in patients with severe illnesses.
The study’s closing words