Kong, M., Shin, S.H., Lee, E., & Yun, E.K. (2014). The effect of laughter therapy on radiation dermatitis in patients with breast cancer: A single-blind prospective pilot study. OncoTargets and Therapy, 7, 2053–2059.
To measure the effectiveness of laughter therapy for preventing radiation-induced dermatitis in patients with breast cancer who are receiving radiation therapy (RT)
Thirty-seven patients were enrolled in the study. Eighteen patients were assigned to the experimental group, which received laughter therapy during radiation treatment, based on their preference to participate. Nineteen patients who did not want to participate in the laughter therapy were assigned to the control group. The laughter therapy started at the beginning of therapy and continued until completion of RT. In this three-part intervention study, patients were assessed by staff observation or a questionnaire before and after laughter therapy. Patients in the control group were not allowed to use any prophylactic creams or lotion (p. 2054).
PHASE OF CARE: Active antitumor treatment
Single-blind, two-group, prospective, nonrandom design
The authors stated that, although laughter therapy showed favorable therapeutic efficacy in preventing dermatitis and alleviating pain, they could not draw a definite conclusion because of the lack of statistical significance. An additional study of a larger sample group is necessary. Some limitations exist in this small pilot study, which makes it difficult to interpret the data and draw conclusions.
This single-blind, prospective, pilot study showed that laughter therapy can be beneficial in preventing radiation-induced dermatitis in patient with breast cancer; however, a well-designed randomized study with a larger sample size is needed to confirm the efficacy of the study.
Laughter therapy may have a beneficial effect on patients with radiation dermatitis undergoing breast cancer treatment. However, not enough data exist to support the sole use of this intervention during treatment.