Supportive therapy combinations showed mixed emotional outcomes during glioma chemotherapy
Adding breathing or music to cognitive-behavioral therapy improved symptom scores versus routine nursing, while combining all components showed a different pattern.
Based on the published abstract. The full paper may contain additional methods, results and limitations.
The 30-second takeaway
Among patients receiving chemotherapy for glioma, cognitive-behavioral therapy paired with either abdominal breathing or music therapy improved anxiety and depression scores compared with routine nursing. The combination containing both additions did not significantly improve those symptoms, although all intervention groups reported better well-being. This pattern does not establish which active treatment combination was superior.
The abstract does not report direct comparisons between the active treatment groups or clearly assign its percentage changes to an assessment time. Because each intervention included cognitive-behavioral therapy, effects cannot be attributed to breathing or music alone.
What was assessed
Patients completed self-rating measures of anxiety and depression, along with a general well-being scale, at specified chemotherapy cycles. These outcomes concern emotional experience during treatment; the study did not report effects on the glioma itself.
Interpreting the combined group
A statistically significant result in one group and a nonsignificant result in another does not establish a difference between those groups. The combined group's well-being improvement also should not be treated as evidence of reduced anxiety or depression.
The original publication
Cognitive-behavioral therapy with abdominal breathing and music therapy for anxiety, depression, and well-being in glioma patients undergoing chemotherapy: A factorial design analysis.
Zhang C, Zhang H, Li L et al.
Complement Ther Med · 2026
- PubMed ID
- 41905675
- Record checked
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