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Randomized controlled pilot trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction for breast and colorectal cancer survivors: effects on cancer-related cognitive impairment

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Abstract

Purpose

Cancer-related cognitive impairment (CRCI) is a common, fatigue-related symptom that disrupts cancer survivors’ quality of life. Few interventions for CRCI exist. As part of a randomized pilot study targeting cancer-related fatigue, the effects of mindfulness-based stress reduction (MBSR) on survivors’ cognitive outcomes were investigated.

Methods

Breast and colorectal cancer survivors (n = 71) with moderate-to-severe fatigue were randomized to MBSR (n = 35) or a fatigue education and support (ES; n = 36) condition. The Attentional Function Index (AFI) and the Stroop test were used to assess survivors’ cognitive function at baseline (T1), after the 8-week intervention period (T2), and 6 months later (T3) using intent-to-treat analysis. Mediation analyses were performed to explore mechanisms of intervention effects on cognitive functioning.

Results

MBSR participants reported significantly greater improvement on the AFI total score compared to ES participants at T2 (d = 0.83, p = 0.001) and T3 (d = 0.55, p = 0.021). MBSR also significantly outperformed ES on most AFI subscales, although both groups improved over time. MBSR produced greater Stroop accuracy rates relative to ES at T2 (r = 0.340, p = 0.005) and T3 (r = 0.280, p = 0.030), with improved accuracy over time only for the MBSR group. There were no significant differences in Stroop reaction time between groups. Improvements in mindfulness mediated the effect of group (e.g., MBSR vs. ES) on AFI total score at T2 and T3.

Conclusions

Additional randomized trials with more comprehensive cognitive measures are warranted to definitively assess the efficacy of MBSR for CRCI.

Implications for Cancer Survivors

This pilot study has important implications for all cancer survivors as it is the first published trial to show that MBSR offers robust and durable improvements in CRCI.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank the participants for their active engagement in this clinical trial and encourage their continued health and wellness.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Indiana University School of Medicine, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    Shelley A. Johns, Linda F. Brown, Kathleen Beck-Coon, Patrick O. Monahan & Yan Tong

  2. Regenstrief Institute, Incorporation, 1050 Wishard Blvd-RG5105, Indianapolis, IN, 46202, USA

    Shelley A. Johns & Tasneem L. Talib

  3. Indiana University School of Nursing, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    Diane Von Ah & Kathleen Beck-Coon

  4. Indiana University Fairbanks School of Public Health, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    Jennifer M. Alyea

  5. West Virginia University School of Medicine, Charleston, WV, USA

    Laura Wilhelm

  6. Butler University, Indianapolis, IN, USA

    R. Brian Giesler

Authors
  1. Shelley A. Johns
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Corresponding author

Correspondence to Shelley A. Johns.

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Funding

Research reported in this publication was supported by the Walther Cancer Foundation (0106–01), Indiana Clinical and Translational Sciences Institute (Grant # TR000163 and # TR000006), and the National Cancer Institute of the National Institutes of Health under Award Number K05CA175048. The content is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not necessarily represent the official views of the funding agencies.

Conflict of interest

The authors have no conflict of interest to report.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in studies involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of the institutional and/or national research committee and with the 1964 Helsinki Declaration and its later amendments or comparable ethical standards.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the study

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Johns, S.A., Von Ah, D., Brown, L.F. et al. Randomized controlled pilot trial of mindfulness-based stress reduction for breast and colorectal cancer survivors: effects on cancer-related cognitive impairment. J Cancer Surviv 10, 437–448 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11764-015-0494-3

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