Researchers in China have found that virtual reality palliative therapy can help improve the physical and emotional state of terminally ill cancer patients.
About 128 cancer patients volunteered to participate in a clinical trial study between November 2022 and September 2023 that examined the impacts of virtual reality therapy. Patients that participated were individuals receiving palliative care at the Shatin Hospital in Hong Kong with different types of lung, breast, rectum and prostate cancers.
The clinical trial studied the impacts of a program developed by a team of researchers in 2020 dubbed the Flourishing-Life-of-Wish Virtual Reality Relaxation Therapy (FLOW-VRT-Relaxation). The VR study’s results were recently unveiled in the Frontiers Medical Technology journal.
Virtual reality relaxation therapy can teach patients diaphragmatic breathing that slows their heartbeat, lowers blood pressure and reduces stress, according to Olive Woo, doctorate student and research assistant at the University of Hong Kong. Woo was among the researchers who developed the VR therapy.
“We found that VR-assisted relaxation outperforms traditional relaxation in terms of physical and psychological symptom management in palliative care,” Woo told Palliative Care News in an email. “FLOW-VRT-Relaxation produced a significant reduction in self-rating for depression, anxiety, drowsiness, and lack of appetite as well as an increase in well-being. We believe that the VR relaxation experiences not only render relaxation experiences, but also activate psychological mechanisms that promote self-determination … all of which traditional face-to-face relaxation may not easily facilitate.”
Half of the participants received VR relaxation therapy, while others received standard-of-care coaching for their palliative symptoms. The VR therapy included patients watching relaxing 360° panoramic videos on a headset that promoted a psychological state of “flourishing” in which participants experienced positive emotions, engaged in meaningful activities and developed a sense of purpose and accomplishment, according to Woo.
Patients rated their experiences based on the Cantonese version of the Edmonton Symptom Assessment System (CESAS), a questionnaire measuring nine common symptoms of cancer patients such as pain, depression and anxiety, among others. A lower CESAS score indicated greater physical and emotional well-being.
Patients in the FLOW-VRT-Relaxation group reported significantly greater improvement in these symptoms than others. CESAS scores for physical symptoms lowered by 4.1 points or by 26.6% among virtual reality relaxation patients, compared to 13% reported by others. Emotional symptoms lowered by 47.4% in the VR relaxation group, compared to 19.6% among other participants.
The findings suggest that technology can help alleviate physical and emotional suffering in a palliative care setting, according to Woo. The utilization of VR therapy could be a more cost-effective tool in palliative pain and symptom management, she indicated.
The VR experience can activate psychological mechanisms such as self-determination and restoration, according to Woo. Use of innovative technology such as VR may overcome certain limitations of traditional pharmaceutical and psychological methods in different regions, she added.
Researchers have plans to further study the long-term effects of FLOW-VRT-Relaxation, with future clinical trials in the works. A main goal is to develop a comprehensive approach that incorporates the important components of psychological assessment and interventions, according to Woo.
“Findings suggest that such cost-effective and scalable VR-assisted relaxation can have significant benefits in managing physical and psychological symptoms in a palliative care setting,” Woo said. “This suggests that VR may provide unique opportunities for engaging patients and facilitating their psychological well-being despite the confines of bed or physical fragility, while traditional face-to-face relaxation may not facilitate the similar psychological mechanisms. As we are facing a global aging population, the use of such cost-effective technology appears to be promising as complementary medicine in palliative care.”