Effects of Behavioral Activation on the Quality of Life and Emotional State of Lung Cancer and Breast Cancer Patients During Chemotherapy Treatment.
Four-to-six sessions of behavioral activation during chemo helps cancer patients stay active and feel better emotionally.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Researchers randomly split cancer patients on chemo into two groups. One group got four to six sessions of behavioral activation. The other group got the hospital’s usual care.
The team then tracked quality of life and mood in both groups.
What they found
People who received behavioral activation felt better and reported a higher quality of life than those who only had usual care.
The study showed the brief protocol works even while patients are still in active treatment.
How this fits with other research
Fernández-Rodríguez et al. (2021) later moved the same idea to survivors after treatment and used group sessions. They still saw big gains in mood and activity, showing the method travels beyond the chemo room.
Boudreau et al. (2015) tried behavioral activation with adults who have intellectual disabilities and added a carer. Mood improved there too, so the approach seems to help across very different populations.
Alfonsson et al. (2015) ran a group behavioral activation RCT for adults with binge-eating disorder. Mood rose, but binge episodes did not drop. This reminds us that behavioral activation lifts feelings, yet you may need extra tools when the target is a specific behavior like binge eating.
Why it matters
If you work with medical patients, you can add a short behavioral activation package to usual care. Four to six sessions can fit between oncology visits and still give a clear mood boost. Start by helping clients schedule one rewarding activity a day and track how they feel.
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Ask your client to pick one pleasant activity they can do today and record mood before and after.
02At a glance
03Original abstract
Research suggests that the progressive abandonment of activities in cancer patients are related to depression and worse quality of life. Behavioral activation (BA) encourages subjects to activate their sources of reinforcement and modify the avoidance responses. This study assesses the effectiveness of BA in improving quality of life and preventing emotional disorders during chemotherapy treatment. One sample of lung cancer patients and another of breast cancer patients were randomized into a BA experimental group (E.G.lung/4sess.n = 50; E.G.breast/6sess.n = 33) and a control group (C.G.lung/4sess.n = 40; C.G.breast/6sess.n = 35), respectively. In each session and in follow-ups (3/6/9 months), all participants completed different assessment scales. The results converge to show the effectiveness of BA, encouraging cancer patients to maintain rewarding activities which can activate their sources of day-to-day reinforcement and modify their experience avoidance patterns. BA appears to be a practical intervention which may improve social and role functioning and the emotional state of cancer patients during chemotherapy treatment.
Behavior modification, 2019 · doi:10.1177/0145445517746915