Effectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Art Therapy on Healthy Quality of Life in Women with Breast Cancer

OBJECTIVE: The purpose of this study was to determine the effectiveness of mindfulness-based art therapy (MBAT) in promoting quality of life in Neyshabur women with breast cancer. METHODS: This study was an interventional design that was conducted on 124 women with breast cancer (any stage) in Iran 2018. One hundred and fourteen women with breast cancer were paired by age and randomized to either 12-week MBAT intervention group or a wait-list-control group. One hundred and fourteen women with breast cancer completed both the pre-and post-study measurements. As compared to the control group, the MBAT group demonstrated a significant decrease in symptoms of distress and significant improvements in key aspects of the health-related quality of life (as measured by the World Health Organization Quality-of-Life - BREF questionnaire). RESULTS: The MBAT interventions had a significant effect on improving quality of life behaviors (P < 0.05). Among the dimensions of quality of life, the highest mean score was for subpsychological (18.14 ± 2.35), and the lowest score was achieved by the subdomains of social relationships (13.54 ± 1.12). The mean (standard deviation) scores of physical health and environment were 17.19 ± 3.55 and 16.10 ± 1.87, respectively. CONCLUSIONS: This investigation of MBAT provides initial encouraging data that support a possible future role for the intervention as a psychosocial option for decrease in symptoms of women with breast cancer and quality of life.