Medi-Cinema: A Pilot Study on Cinematherapy and Cancer as A New Psychological Approach on 30 Gynecological Oncological Patients

SIMPLE SUMMARY: During the COVID-19 pandemic, as clinical psychologists, we felt a human need—in addition to an ethical duty—to guarantee continuity of care to our patients, many of whom felt alone and frightened or verbalized the fear of being abandoned. This provided a channel of psychological support that helped patients to face, together, such a difficult moment. In consideration of the difficulty of accessing hospitals during this period, and the fear felt by many patients of face-to-face visits for psychological interviews, we devised a sharing project that could be used remotely. In so doing, we responded to the need to share and normalize that we observed in our patients, with this pilot project aiming at evaluating the effectiveness of cinema as a tool for emotional mediation in psychological support paths. ABSTRACT: Background: Several subjects affected by cancer experience a significant level of multidimensional disease. This longitudinal study aims to evaluate the effectiveness of psycho-oncological support using Cinema as an emotional mediator and to promote perceived well-being by personalized psychological treatment. Methods: Thirty women diagnosed with gynecological cancer watched 12 movies and participated in a psychotherapy group co-conducted by two psychotherapists. Patients completed nine questionnaires at T0 (baseline), T1 (3 months) and T2 (6 months). Results: Patients observed significant improvements (CORE-OM: p < 0.001) in psychological well-being. The results showed statistically significant differences, even in several other dimensions, such as Anxiety (STAY-Y1-2: p < 0.001), Empathy (BEES, p < 0.001), Coping (COPE: p < 0.001), QoL (QLQ-C30, p: 0.026), couple relationship (DAS, Satisfaction: p: 0.013; Cohesion: p: 0.004) and alexithymia (TAS-20, Difficulty Identifying Feeling: p: 0.002; Externally-Oriented Thinking: p: 0.003). Conclusions: The data show that cinema, as an innovative psychological approach, could be a valid instrument to support patients in oncological pathways as well as facilitating the process of recognizing themselves in other patients and communicating about their own feelings.