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Art Therapy: An Innovative Approach to the Treatment of Cancer

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Handbook of Cancer and Immunology

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Abstract

Art is a multimodal process in which various entities are created intentionally to have aesthetic aspects. Art can be sorted as visual arts (drawing, painting, photography, etc.), performing arts (music, drama, dance, etc.), and literary arts (writing and poetry). The utilization of art modalities for reaching a therapeutic effect is called art therapy.

Art therapy can strongly affect the psychological and psychosomatic aspects of the diseases, and here is where it targets cancer too.

When cancer-diagnosed patient joins any art therapy modality like drama, dance/movement, music, visual arts, and expressive writing, she/he can gain the benefits of art therapy such as controlling anxiety, depression, and fatigue, therefore obtaining a better quality of life.

Art therapy can provide the foundation for a better understanding of oneself and the surrounded environment leading to better coping with dilemmas.

The benefits of art therapy are not restricted to cancer patients; cancer survivors, healthcare personnel, and family members can be targeted too.

Scarce literature is available on the physiologic effects of art therapy that is limited to dance/movement and music therapy affecting the cortisol levels and the heart rate, respectively.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Yasuj Student Research Committee, Yasuj University of Medical Sciences, Yasuj, Iran

    Negar Sadat Rabbani

  2. Network of Empirical, Gustatory, and Olfactory Aesthetics (NEGOA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Yasuj, Iran

    Negar Sadat Rabbani

  3. Young Researchers and Elite Club, Tehran Medical Sciences, Islamic Azad University, Tehran, Iran

    Negar Azami

  4. Network of Empirical, Gustatory, and Olfactory Aesthetics (NEGOA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Tehran, Iran

    Negar Azami, Fatemeh Sodeifian & Nima Rezaei

  5. Faculty of Medical Sciences, Neuroscience Research Center, Lebanese University, Beirut, Lebanon

    Sara A. Makka

  6. Network of Empirical, Gustatory, and Olfactory Aesthetics (NEGOA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Beirut, Lebanon

    Sara A. Makka

  7. Student Research Committee, School of Medicine, Shahid Beheshti University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Fatemeh Sodeifian

  8. School of Medicine, Tehran University of Medical Sciences, Tehran, Iran

    Kawthar Mohamed & Nima Rezaei

  9. Network of Empirical, Gustatory, and Olfactory Aesthetics (NEGOA), Universal Scientific Education and Research Network (USERN), Manama, Bahrain

    Kawthar Mohamed

  10. Research Center for Immunodeficiencies, Children’s Medical Center Hospital, Tehran, Iran

    Nima Rezaei

Authors
  1. Negar Sadat Rabbani
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  2. Negar Azami
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  3. Sara A. Makka
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  4. Fatemeh Sodeifian
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  5. Kawthar Mohamed
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  6. Nima Rezaei
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Correspondence to Nima Rezaei .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Clinical Immunology, Karolinska University Hospital, Huddinge, Sweden

    Nima Rezaei

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Rabbani, N.S., Azami, N., Makka, S.A., Sodeifian, F., Mohamed, K., Rezaei, N. (2023). Art Therapy: An Innovative Approach to the Treatment of Cancer. In: Rezaei, N. (eds) Handbook of Cancer and Immunology. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80962-1_283-1

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-80962-1_283-1

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