EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review
Background: Psychological distress is common among patients with cancer, with severe consequences on their quality of life. Anxiety and depression are the most common clinical presentation of psychological distress in cancer patients, but in some cases cancer may represent a traumatic event resultin...
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doaj-1e63f1202165461f9b19555e5c018bcd2021-01-18T04:15:16ZengFrontiers Media S.A.Frontiers in Psychology1664-10782021-01-011110.3389/fpsyg.2020.590204590204EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic ReviewAlberto Portigliatti Pomeri0Anna La Salvia1Sara Carletto2Sara Carletto3Francesco Oliva4Luca Ostacoli5Luca Ostacoli6State Police Health Service Department, Ministry of Interior, Rome, ItalyDepartment of Oncology, 12 de Octubre University Hospital, Madrid, SpainDepartment of Neuroscience “Rita Levi Montalcini”, University of Torino, Torino, ItalyClinical Psychology Unit, University Hospital City of Science and Health, Torino, ItalyDepartment of Clinical and Biological Sciences, University of Torino, Orbassano, ItalyClinical Psychology Unit, University Hospital City of Science and Health, Torino, ItalyDepartment of Clinical and Biological Sciences, University of Torino, Orbassano, ItalyBackground: Psychological distress is common among patients with cancer, with severe consequences on their quality of life. Anxiety and depression are the most common clinical presentation of psychological distress in cancer patients, but in some cases cancer may represent a traumatic event resulting in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Currently, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is considered an evidence-based treatment for PTSD, but recent studies also showed its effectiveness for anxiety and depression. The aim of the present systematic review is to summarize the current literature on the effect of EMDR on cancer-related psychological distress.Methods: A literature search was conducted for peer-reviewed articles about “EMDR” and “cancer patients” in the following electronic databases: PubMed, MEDLINE, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Cochrane library.Results: Our search identified 7 studies in which EMDR was used with a total of 140 cancer patients. The psychiatric diagnosis was PTSD in 3 studies. Otherwise, the diagnosis concerned the anxious and depressive disorder spectrum. Overall, EMDR treatment schedules used were highly heterogeneous, with a different number of sessions (from 2 to 12) and a different duration of therapy (up to 4 months). However, across all studies analyzed EMDR therapy was judged to be adequate in reducing symptoms of psychological distress in this population.Conclusions: According to the results of our analysis, the level of evidence regarding EMDR efficacy in cancer patients is limited by the scarcity of studies and their low methodological quality. Although better quality research is needed, available data suggest that EMDR could be a promising treatment for psychological distress in patients with cancer.https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.590204/fullEMDRcancerPTSDpsycho-oncologypsychological intervention |
collection |
DOAJ |
language |
English |
format |
Article |
sources |
DOAJ |
author |
Alberto Portigliatti Pomeri Anna La Salvia Sara Carletto Sara Carletto Francesco Oliva Luca Ostacoli Luca Ostacoli |
spellingShingle |
Alberto Portigliatti Pomeri Anna La Salvia Sara Carletto Sara Carletto Francesco Oliva Luca Ostacoli Luca Ostacoli EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review Frontiers in Psychology EMDR cancer PTSD psycho-oncology psychological intervention |
author_facet |
Alberto Portigliatti Pomeri Anna La Salvia Sara Carletto Sara Carletto Francesco Oliva Luca Ostacoli Luca Ostacoli |
author_sort |
Alberto Portigliatti Pomeri |
title |
EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review |
title_short |
EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review |
title_full |
EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review |
title_fullStr |
EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review |
title_full_unstemmed |
EMDR in Cancer Patients: A Systematic Review |
title_sort |
emdr in cancer patients: a systematic review |
publisher |
Frontiers Media S.A. |
series |
Frontiers in Psychology |
issn |
1664-1078 |
publishDate |
2021-01-01 |
description |
Background: Psychological distress is common among patients with cancer, with severe consequences on their quality of life. Anxiety and depression are the most common clinical presentation of psychological distress in cancer patients, but in some cases cancer may represent a traumatic event resulting in posttraumatic stress disorder (PTSD). Currently, Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR) therapy is considered an evidence-based treatment for PTSD, but recent studies also showed its effectiveness for anxiety and depression. The aim of the present systematic review is to summarize the current literature on the effect of EMDR on cancer-related psychological distress.Methods: A literature search was conducted for peer-reviewed articles about “EMDR” and “cancer patients” in the following electronic databases: PubMed, MEDLINE, Science Direct, Google Scholar, and Cochrane library.Results: Our search identified 7 studies in which EMDR was used with a total of 140 cancer patients. The psychiatric diagnosis was PTSD in 3 studies. Otherwise, the diagnosis concerned the anxious and depressive disorder spectrum. Overall, EMDR treatment schedules used were highly heterogeneous, with a different number of sessions (from 2 to 12) and a different duration of therapy (up to 4 months). However, across all studies analyzed EMDR therapy was judged to be adequate in reducing symptoms of psychological distress in this population.Conclusions: According to the results of our analysis, the level of evidence regarding EMDR efficacy in cancer patients is limited by the scarcity of studies and their low methodological quality. Although better quality research is needed, available data suggest that EMDR could be a promising treatment for psychological distress in patients with cancer. |
topic |
EMDR cancer PTSD psycho-oncology psychological intervention |
url |
https://www.frontiersin.org/articles/10.3389/fpsyg.2020.590204/full |
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