Trial reportPloS one2019
Effects of laughter therapy on quality of life in patients with cancer: An open-label, randomized controlled trial.
Trial report in PloS one, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to 3 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 15 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
The Effect of Laughter Therapy on Students' Anxiety, Life Satisfaction and Psychological Well-being in the Covid-19 Pandemic
The Effect of Laughter Yoga Practiced After Burn Dressing on Pain, Anxiety and Mental Well-Being Levels.
Effect of Laughter Yoga on Pain, Fatigue and General Well-Being in Cancer Patients and Their Caregivers: A Randomized Controlled Study
Who cites it
15 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 75 citations in OpenAlex.
- Are mind-body therapies effective for relieving cancer-related pain in adults? A systematic review and meta-analysis.Psycho-oncology · 2022Pooled it
- Effects of laughter yoga on health-related quality of life in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy: a randomized clinical trial.BMC complementary medicine and therapies · 2023Trial
- Trial
- The Effects of Laughter Yoga on Perceived Stress, Positive Psychological Capital, and Exercise Capacity in Lung Cancer Chemotherapy Patients: A Pilot Randomized Trial.Integrative cancer therapiesTrial
- How recreational therapies impact physiological and psychosocial outcomes in cancer patients: a review.Oncology reviews · 2026Review
- A Narrative Review of Nonpharmacological Approaches to Control Anxiety in Pediatric Dentistry.International journal of pediatrics · 2025Review
- Development of an Artificial Intelligence-Based Tailored Mobile Intervention for Nurse Burnout: Single-Arm Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2024Article
- Bibliometric Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials on Yoga Interventions for Cancer Patients: A Decade in Review.Cureus · 2024Review
- Efficacy and Safety of Laughter Yoga in Cancer Patients: A Scoping Review of Randomized Controlled Trials.Cureus · 2024Article
- A structured laughter yoga therapy program on patients with chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting: A randomized clinical trial.Asia-Pacific journal of oncology nursing · 2024Article
- Are yoga and physical activity determinants of quality of life in Polish adults? a cross-sectional study.BMJ open · 2022Article
- Effects of Simulated Laughter Therapy Using a Breathing Exercise: A Study on Hospitalized Pulmonary Tuberculosis Patients.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2022Article
- CLARIFY 2021: explanation and elaboration of the Delphi-based guidelines for the reporting of yoga research.BMJ open · 2021Article
- Mental Health Consequences of the Three Mile Island, Chernobyl, and Fukushima Nuclear Disasters: A Scoping Review.International journal of environmental research and public health · 2021Article
- How Should Therapists Treat Patients who are so Altruistic They Regularly Harm Themselves for the Sake of Others?Innovations in clinical neuroscienceReview
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 3 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundFew randomized controlled trials have assessed the effects of laughter therapy on health-related quality of life (QOL) in cancer patients. This study aimed to evaluate these effects as an exploratory endpoint in cancer patients as part of a randomized controlled trial conducted at a single institution in Japan.
methodsThe Initiative On Smile And CAncer (iOSACA) study was an open-label randomized controlled trial conducted in 2017 in which participants aged 40-64 years with cancer were randomly assigned to either an intervention group (laughter therapy) or control group (no laughter therapy). Each participant in the intervention group underwent a laughter therapy session once every two weeks for seven weeks (total of four sessions). Each session involved a laughter yoga routine followed by Rakugo or Manzai traditional Japanese verbal comedy performances. We assessed QOL as a secondary endpoint in this intention-to-treat population using the European Organisation for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire Core 30 (EORTC QLQ-C30). The questionnaire was completed at baseline (Week 0) and at Weeks 3 and 7. Mixed-effects models for repeated measures were developed to compare time-dependent changes in each QOL domain from baseline between the intervention and control groups.
resultsFour participants retracted consent and one participant was retrospectively excluded from analysis due to unmet inclusion criteria. The analysis was conducted using 56 participants, with 26 in the intervention group and 30 in the control group. Questionnaire completion rates were high (>90%), with similar QOL scores reported at baseline in both groups. The mixed-effects models showed that the intervention group had significantly better cognitive function and less pain than the control group for a short period.
conclusionLaughter therapy may represent a beneficial, noninvasive complementary intervention in the clinical setting. Further studies are needed to verify the hypotheses generated from this exploratory study.
Indexed as
Identifiers
What OpenQuestion holds
Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.