Effects of cognitive-behavioral music therapy on fatigue with patients on a blood and marrow transplantation unit: a convergent parallel mixed methods effectiveness study

Abstract

Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is an under-treated condition frequently experienced by cancer patients that can negatively affect wellbeing both during hospitalization and after hospital discharge. The purpose of this mixed methods effectiveness study was to determine if and how cognitive-behavioral music therapy (CBMT) can reduce fatigue of hospitalized patients on an adult Blood and Marrow Transplant (BMT) unit. The researchers measured the effects of CBMT on five aspects of participants' fatigue using a convergent parallel mixed methods design. Participants (N = 11) were randomly assigned to experimental or wait-list control conditions and completed the Multidimensional Fatigue Inventory (Smets, Garssen, Bonke, & Haes, 1995) at pre- and posttest. Experimental participants also completed a semi-structured interview before hospital discharge. Quantitative results indicated no significant between-group differences concerning fatigue. However, experimental participants tended to have decreases in mean fatigue scores from pre- to posttest while control participants had increases in mean fatigue scores from pre- to posttest. Qualitative data tended to support quantitative data and indicated that CBMT a) influenced fatigue cognitively by increasing motivation and self-efficacy, b) influenced fatigue affectively by promoting relaxation and restful states, and c) represented a meaningful, unique, and holistic service for hospitalized BMT patients. It seems that CBMT sessions may be an effective intervention concerning various aspects of fatigue for hospitalized BMT patients. Due to the small sample size, quantitative results should be interpreted with caution. Limitations of the study, implications for clinical practice, and suggestions for future research are provided.