I recently did a piece on Music Therapy for the personal growth blog, but I wanted to go more deeply into some of the clinically proven uses of music therapy for cancer patients in particular.

The Benefits

In general, the realized benefit of musical therapy is to promote healing and improve overall quality of life. AS I mentioned in the article on the Personal Growth blog, some studies have found that music therapy can lower heart rate, blood pressure, and breathing rate.

Even more interesting, though, is that the American Cancer Society (www.cancer.org) SAYS there is some evidence that, when used with conventional treatment, music therapy can help to reduce pain and relieve chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, as well as relieve stress and provide an overall sense of well-being.

Music Therapy in Cancer Treatment

Music therapy is often used in cancer treatment to help reduce pain, anxiety, and nausea caused by chemotherapy. Some people believe music therapy may be a beneficial addition to the health care of children with cancer by promoting social interaction and cooperation. There is evidence that music therapy can reduce high blood pressure, rapid heart beat, depression, and sleeplessness according to the American Cancer Society. There are no claims music therapy can cure cancer or other diseases, but medical experts do believe it can reduce some symptoms, aid healing, improve physical movement, and enrich a patient’s quality of life.

Music therapy for medical treatment is not just about listening to certain kinds of music. Some aspects of music therapy include making music, writing songs, and talking about lyrics, in addition to making music. It may also involve imagery and learning through music. For cancer patients, music therapy may be conducted in hospitals, cancer centers, hospices, at home, or anywhere people can benefit from its calming or stimulating effects.

Just as I mentioned in the Personal Growth blog, you do not need any musical ability whatsoever to benefit from music therapy.

Clinical Studies

This entire section is pulled directly from the American Cancer Society website, specifically at: http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/ComplementaryandAlternativeMedicine/MindBodyandSpirit/music-therapy. (It can be difficult to find one very specific thing you’re looking for on their site because the quantity and variety is so vast.)

Researchers have found that music therapy, when used with anti-nausea drugs for patients receiving high-dose chemotherapy, can help ease nausea and vomiting. A number of clinical trials have shown the benefit of music therapy for short-term pain, including pain from cancer. Some studies have suggested that music may help decrease the overall intensity of the patient’s experience of pain when used with pain-relieving drugs. Music therapy can also result in a decreased need for pain medicine in some patients, although studies on this topic have shown mixed results.

In hospice patients, one study found that music therapy improved comfort, relaxation, and pain control. Another study found that quality of life improved in cancer patients who received music therapy, even as it declined in those who did not. No differences were seen in survival between the 2 groups.

A more recent clinical trial looked at the effects of music during the course of several weeks of radiation treatments. The researchers found that while emotional distress (such as anxiety) seemed to be helped at the beginning of treatment, the patients reported that this effect gradually decreased. Music did not appear to help such symptoms as pain, fatigue, and depression over the long term.

Other clinical trials have revealed a reduction in heart rate, blood pressure, breathing rate, insomnia, depression, and anxiety with music therapy. No one knows all the ways music can benefit the body, but studies have shown that music can affect brain waves, brain circulation, and stress hormones. These effects are usually seen during and shortly after the music therapy.

Studies have shown that students who take music lessons have improved IQ levels, and show improvement in nonmusical abilities as well. Other studies have shown that listening to music composed by Mozart produces a short-term improvement in tasks that use spatial abilities. Studies of brain circulation have shown that people listening to Mozart have more activity in certain areas of the brain. This has been called the “Mozart effect.” Although the reasons for this effect are not completely clear, this kind of information supports the idea that music can be used in many helpful ways.

Some clinical trials that involve listening to music have shown no benefit on anxiety during surgical procedures, although one study that allowed patients to choose their own music showed improved anxiety levels. One recent review of studies looked at the effect of music on all types of pain and found a wide variation in its effects. The study authors observed that the best effects were on short-term pain after surgery. It is important to note that not all studies of music use music therapists, who assess the patient’s needs, circumstances, and preferences, as well as the different effects of certain types of music. This may account for some differences in clinical trial results.

In My Experience . . .

I did not have a music therapist and due to neuropathy could not pursue dance therapy. I did go to milongas as often as I could walk, but it was only about once a month. Though there can definitely be something therapeutic about a body of dancers, it was also depressing because I couldn’t dance on my neuropathy feet.

I did have a tendency to play New Age music on pandora when I would write the Cielem’el Cancer Journal, which was every day. In and of itself, that was a therapy for me, because even though I wasn’t physically or mentally up to my regular job, making myself write every day did give my mind a little exercise. It got bad towards the end though, when my eyesight got so bad I couldn’t see the computer screen.

In terms of music reducing any chemo side effects, I can’t say that happened for me. Maybe the side effects were literally too severe for that, or maybe I was so doped up that it just didn’t make a difference. My flute was home at my place in the mountains, so I didn’t have the opportunity to try music-generation therapy. If the neuropathy in my hands hadn’t been too bad, I’m sure that would have helped me emotionally even if it didn’t help with physical symptoms like pain or nausea.

Your cancer center or hospital may not have a music therapy program, but feel free to ask your doctor about it. Music Therapy is considered a complementary treatment, as opposed to an alternative treatment, so if you’re going with the conventional treatment regime of mainstream Western medicine (surgery, chemo, radiation) you can certainly supplement that with music therapy. Anything that can improve your quality of life during (and after) treatment is worth giving a try, in my opinion.