The effect of hypnotherapy in the sleep quality of women with breast cancer

Abstract

Objective: The purpose of this study is to test the effectiveness of hypnotherapy in sleep quality in breast cancer women while receiving standard medical treatment.Method: Participants were 40 breast cancer patients in the early stages, scheduled for chemotherapy. Two groups of 20 patients each, one group was applied an intensive phase of 12 sessions of group hypnotherapy for a month and a second phase of 12 sessions every fortnight for six months while the other group was formed (control) received only standard medical treatment. Sleep quality of patients in both groups was assessed with the Quality Index Pittsburgh Sleep (ICSP) that was applied before surgery and at the end of 12 and 24 sessions.Results: At the end of the first block of 12 sessions, the hypnotherapy group showed a clinically and statistically significant in the components of latency, duration, efficiency and overall quality of sleep ICSP improvement. Later, at only 24 sessions’s significance in the sleep efficiency component and the other three components shall be maintained clinical improvement was maintained. These results compared with the control group, at 12 sessions that showed an increase in components indicating a poorer quality of sleep, keeping these results to 24 sessions.Conclusions: The psychotherapeutic hypnotherapy is a useful technique to improve sleep quality in breast cancer women receiving chemotherapy. However it is important to design a randomized pilot study to confirm these data.

Keywords

• Hipnoterapia
• hipnosis clínica
• calidad de sueño
• cáncer de mama.