TENSE AND RELEASE: IMPROVING STANDARD OF CARE WITH PROGRESSIVE MUSCLE RELAXATION FOR PATIENTS WITH ADVANCED LUNG CANCER

Background Patients with advanced lung cancer experience severe and distressing symptoms, especially anxiety, breathlessness, insomnia, pain, and fatigue. Progressive muscle relaxation (PMR) is an empirically supported treatment for reducing psychological and physiological symptoms. This study aimed to test PMR as a method to reduce symptoms and enhance standard of care (SOC) for patients with advanced lung cancer. Materials and Methods A static group comparison design was used. The sample consisted of patients (N=72) newly diagnosed and seeking treatment for stage III/IV lung cancer. At the initial clinic visit, patients (n=40) were offered a brief PMR session and provided instructions for later use. Patients completed baseline and 4-week assessments of anxiety (Generalized Anxiety Disorder-7 Scale), breathlessness (American Thoracic Society for the Division of Lung Diseases Questionnaire), insomnia (Medical Outcomes Study Sleep Scale), pain (Brief Pain Inventory), and fatigue (Fatigue Severity Scale). SOC patients (n=32) completed assessments at 4 weeks only. Linear regression analyses compared baseline and 4-week assessments for the PMR group and 4-week assessments between the PMR and SOC groups, controlling for relevant covariates (age, performance status, and smoking history). Results Breathlessness and pain improved from baseline to follow-up for the PMR group (b=2.07, p=.071; b=1.96, p=.036, respectively). There were no signi cant changes in anxiety, insomnia, and fatigue (all ps>.10). Between groups, patients receiving PMR reported less pain (b=2.48, p=.046) and less fatigue (b=2.44, p=.014) at 4-week follow-up, compared to those receiving SOC. Conclusions PMR effectively reduced symptoms of breathlessness, pain, and fatigue among patients with advanced lung cancer. Interventions introducing PMR at the initial pre- treatment appointment may provide an improvement to SOC lung cancer treatment.