Affective touch intervention improves existential distress and quality of life in advanced cancer patients
Photo by Dmytro Vynohradov / Unsplash
Key Takeaway
Consider affective touch as a supportive adjunct for existential distress and QoL in advanced cancer, but note limited evidence for sustained pain relief.
This randomized controlled trial enrolled 83 patients with advanced cancer to evaluate a 2-week affective touch intervention administered once daily versus a control group receiving routine nursing care. The primary outcome was not explicitly stated, but secondary outcomes included existential distress, pain, and quality of life, assessed over a 2-week follow-up period.
After the intervention, existential distress total scores were 6.60 ± 2.75 in the experimental group versus 8.15 ± 2.23 in the control group (p < .05). Quality of life total scores were 57.24 ± 14.26 in the experimental group versus 50.24 ± 12.35 in the control group (p < .001). Affective touch demonstrated an immediate ameliorative effect on pain after each daily session, but was not shown to provide significant long-term pain relief at 1 or 2 weeks after the intervention.
Safety, tolerability, and adverse event data were not reported. Key limitations include the small sample size (n=83), short 2-week follow-up, and lack of detail on study setting, blinding procedures, or effect sizes. The funding source and conflicts of interest were also not reported.
In practice, this evidence suggests affective touch may be a simple, non-invasive adjunct to routine care that could help manage existential distress and improve quality of life in patients with advanced cancer, with immediate pain relief as a possible transient benefit. However, clinicians should interpret these results cautiously due to the study's limitations and the absence of safety data.
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View Original Abstract ↓
BACKGROUND: Patients with advanced cancer generally experience adverse physical and mental burdens. As a nondrug approach, affective touch provides support for oncology nurses in helping patients with advanced cancer overcome these burdens.
PURPOSE: This study was designed to implement an affective touch intervention for patients with advanced cancer to explore its effects on existential distress, pain, and quality of life in this vulnerable patient population.
METHODS: In this randomized controlled trial, 83 patients with advanced cancer were allocated randomly to either the experimental or control group. The experimental group received the affective touch intervention once a day for 2 weeks. General data were collected from all of the participants before the intervention. Existential Distress Scale and Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-General scores were collected both before and 2 weeks after the intervention. Average pain levels on the Brief Pain Inventory were collected before and at weeks 1 and 2 of the intervention. Current pain levels were collected daily after the intervention.
RESULTS: After completing the 2-week intervention, the total scores for the control and experimental groups were, respectively, 8.15 ± 2.23 and 6.60 ± 2.75 (p < .05) for existential distress and 50.24 ± 12.35 and 57.24 ± 14.26 (<.001) for quality of life, showing a significant improvement effect for the intervention. Affective touch was shown to have an immediate ameliorative effect on pain after the daily intervention but was not shown to be significantly effective in providing long-term pain relief at either 1 or 2 weeks after the intervention.
CONCLUSIONS/IMPLICATIONS FOR PRACTICE: Affective touch, as a simple, noninvasive, and cost-effective approach implemented alongside routine nursing care, may improve existential distress, immediate pain, and quality of life in patients with advanced cancer. The affective touch intervention is worth promoting and applying in clinical settings. Further efforts by senior practice nurses are needed to incorporate this intervention into medical oncology practice.
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