Dance/Movement Therapy and Breast Cancer Care

2017 ◽  
pp. 882-902
Author(s):  
Ilene A. Serlin ◽  
Nancy Goldov ◽  
Erika Hansen
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Sense Of Self ◽  
Relevant Literature ◽  
Movement Therapy ◽  
Dance Movement Therapy ◽  
Dance Movement ◽  
Supportive Environment ◽  
Women's Lives ◽  
Life Trajectory

Breast cancer causes the second highest mortality rate for any type of cancer. The illness, treatment, and side-effects can impact a woman’s identity, body image, and ability to function. Medical dance/movement therapy (MDMT) is a holistic therapeutic method uniquely suited to working with women with breast cancer. This chapter describes MDMT as an intervention that, through a safe and supportive environment that encourages creativity, can help develop psycho, social, and spiritual dimensions of women’s lives at a time when their life trajectory has been interrupted. It explores ways in which MDMT can enable women to rebuild their sense of self and their worlds. Arguments are put forward that create new meaning-making systems, confronting existential issues, and experiencing personal transformation through movement which can lead to enhanced wellbeing. A review of relevant literature is included to illustrate some key ideas of this work at individual, group, and ritual/community levels.

scholarly journals Dance/Movement Therapy as an Intervention in Breast Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 ◽  
pp. 1-6
Author(s):  
Natalja Fatkulina ◽  
Vaiva Hendrixson ◽  
Alona Rauckiene-Michealsson ◽  
Justina Kievisiene ◽  
Arturas Razbadauskas ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Quality Of Life ◽  
Mental Health ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Movement Therapy ◽  
Dance Movement Therapy ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Dance Movement ◽  
The Impact

Aim. In this paper, we systematically review the evidence looking at the effect of dance/movement therapy (DMT) and mental health outcomes and quality of life in breast cancer patients. Method. The literature search was done with the databases PubMed (MEDLINE), EBSCO, and Cochrane Central by using the following search words: “dancing/dance/movement therapy,” “breast cancer/neoplasms/carcinoma/tumour” or “mammary cancer,” “mental health,” and “quality of life.” Ninety-four articles were found. Only empirical interventional studies (N = 6) were selected for the review: randomised controlled trials (RCT) (n = 5) and non-RCT (n = 1). PRISMA guidelines were used. Results. Data from 6 studies including 385 participants who had been diagnosed with breast cancer, were of an average age of 55.7 years, and had participated in DMT programmes for 3–24 weeks were analysed. In each study, the main outcomes that were measured were quality of life, physical activity, stress, and emotional and social well-being. Different questionnaires were used for the evaluation of outcomes. The mental health of the participants who received DMT intervention improved: they reported a better quality of life and decreased stress, symptoms, and fatigue. Conclusion. We found only six studies for review, and some had a small number of participants. However, our findings indicate that DMT could be successfully used as a complimentary therapy in addition to standard cancer treatment for improving the quality of life and mental health of women who have been diagnosed with breast cancer. More research is needed to evaluate the complexity of the impact of complimentary therapies. It is possible that DMT could be more effective if used with other therapies.

scholarly journals The Development of Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy Intervention for Chronic Pain: A Pilot Study With Chronic Headache Patients

2021 ◽  
Vol 12 ◽  
Author(s):  
Indra Majore-Dusele ◽  
Vicky Karkou ◽  
Inga Millere
Keyword(s):  
Chronic Pain ◽  
Pilot Study ◽  
Chronic Headache ◽  
Meaning Making ◽  
Movement Therapy ◽  
Outpatient Rehabilitation ◽  
Sufficient Information ◽  
Dance Movement Therapy ◽  
Dance Movement ◽  
Mindfulness Skills

Chronic pain is of significant global concern. There is growing evidence that body–mind therapies and psychological approaches can contribute toward changing chronic pain perceptions. This is the first model described in the literature that combines a mindfulness-based approach with dance movement therapy and explores the potential psychological and pain-related changes for this client population. In this paper, the results from the pilot study are presented involving patients with chronic headache recruited in an outpatient rehabilitation setting.Methods: In this pilot study, 29 patients (n = 29) with chronic headache were randomized to either the Mindful-Based Dance Movement Therapy (MBDMT) group or the waiting list control group (treatment as usual, TAU). The MBDMT group was offered 10 sessions in a clinical outpatient rehabilitation setting for 5 weeks. Data were collected pre- and post-intervention and 16 weeks after the intervention was finished. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Patient Health Questionnaire−9 (PHQ-9), Five Facet Mindfulness Questionnaire (FFMQ), and Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) were used as outcome measures.Results: The working model of MBDMT identifies nine therapeutic mechanisms (safe therapeutic environment, mindfulness skills, body awareness, relaxation/releasing, distancing and staying with discomfort, meaning making, self-regulation, acceptance and integration, creative process). Per-protocol analysis reveals statistically significant reduction of pain intensity and depression scores in favor of the MBDMT group, and these improvements were maintained in the follow-up assessment.Conclusions: The results suggest that MBDMT is a feasible and promising therapy approach for chronic pain patients. The pilot study offered sufficient information and preliminary results in the desirable direction to enable the researchers to move to a randomized controlled trial (RCT) stage in order to establish the efficacy of the intervention.Clinical Trial Registration: The study was registered in the www.researchregistry.com, registry (5483).

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