Listening to music may ease cancer patients' pain

(Reuters Health) - Listening to music at home may reduce cancer patients’ pain and fatigue and ease symptoms like loss of appetite and difficulty concentrating, according to research in Taiwan.

In the study, breast cancer patients assigned to 30 minutes of music listening five times a week had “noticeably” reduced side effects of cancer and its treatment over 24 weeks, researchers report in the European Journal of Cancer Care.

The patients said the music helped their physical and psychological wellbeing because it distanced them from negative thoughts about cancer.

“Music therapy is convenient, does not involve invasive procedures, and can easily be used by people in the comfort of their homes,” said senior study author Kuei-Ru Chou of Taipei Medical University.

“Home-based music interventions can also be used with no cost,” Chou told Reuters Health by email. “Healthcare services have become expensive in the present time.”

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