The effect of hypnosis on the quality of life in women with breast cancer

Cancer is a chronic disease significantly affecting the quality of life ofthe patients who suffer from it, because they must face stressful situations, including their diagnosis, surgical procedures, and the adverse effects of chemotherapy and radiotherapy.Method:A quasi-experimental design was used with a convenience sample. Two groups of patients with early breast cancer diagnoses were assigned to either a control group that received standard medical care (n = 20), or a hypnosisgroup (n = 20) that received 12 intensive sessions over the course of 1 month, and 12 additionalsessions over the course of 6 months. The patientsquality of life was evaluatedusing the European Organization for the Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality ofLife Questionnaire Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30).Results:The hypnosis group showed a statistically significant improvement and a large effect size on the cognitive functioning and social functioning scales compared to the control group. The physical functioning, role functioning, and quality of life scales showed improvement with a medium effect size, but the changes were not statistically significant.Conclusion:The improvement observed in the cognitive functioning and social functioning scales allows us to suggest that hypnosis improves the quality of life ofbreast cancer patients during chemotherapy.