Benefits of a mindfulness and compassion program for cancer patients: experience in a Spanish public hospital setting.
Marcial Arredondo, Ferran Mestanza, Ruth Carpio, Joan Escarrabill, Clara López-solà, Eva Palou, Lesly Acosta, Laia Fernández, Vanesa Vilas-riotorto, Tamara Sauri, Begoña Mellado
Clinical & translational oncology : official publication of the Federation of Spanish Oncology Societies and of the National Cancer Institute of Mexico April 17, 2025 DOI: 10.1007/s12094-025-03913-1
Summary
Mindfulness and compassion programs significantly enhance the well-being of cancer patients, as evidenced by a study involving 153 participants. Among those, 64.3% completed an 8-week program, leading to notable reductions in anxiety and depression scores. Specifically, 83.3% of patients reported improvements in their mental health. Participants also expressed benefits like better health-related decision-making and emotional support. This initiative demonstrates that integrating mindfulness practices into cancer care can effectively improve both psychological health and overall quality of life for patients and their families.
Abstract
Mindfulness-based interventions have been shown to improve the quality of life of cancer patients and are widely recommended. This was a non-randomized, single-center study designed to assess the feasibility and benefits of a mindfulness and compassion program for individuals living with cancer (MCP-C). The primary objective was to evaluate the feasibility of the program, while the secondary objective was to assess its effectiveness in adult cancer patients and their relatives. Before and after completing the program, participants completed the 12-item General Health Questionnaire (GHQ- 12) and the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS). A qualitative study was also conducted using focus groups and a structured qualitative survey. A total of eight courses were delivered, six in person in 2019 and two online in 2020. A total of 153 participants were enrolled, of whom 142 were considered evaluable. Among them, 90 (64.3%) completed the program, including 75 patients (83.3%) and 15 relatives. The intervention was associated with significant reductions (p < 0.01) in mean scores on the GHQ- 12 and the HADS-A and HADS-D subscales. In the qualitative assessment, participants reported multiple benefits, including increased awareness of health-related decision-making, improved relationship with the disease, a sense of companionship, emotional support, and overall enhancements in daily life. Implementing an 8-week mindfulness and self-compassion program within the routine practice of a public hospital was feasible and led to significant improvements in the psychological well-being of cancer patients and their relatives.