Evidence map›Paper›PMID 34355279›Full record

Trial reportSupportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer2022

Psychoneuroendocrinological effects of music therapy versus mindfulness in palliative care: results from the 'Song of Life' randomized controlled trial.

Friederike Koehler, Jens Kessler, Martin Stoffel, Martin Weber, Hubert J Bardenheuer, Beate Ditzen, Marco Warth

Abstract readRandomized Controlled Trial
PubMed Full text at PMC Publisher
In one paragraph

Trial report in Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 11 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
11citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from 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.

2 · The registry

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.

Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

11 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Music therapy for end-of-life care.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2025
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4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

7 authors.

Friederike KoehlerInstitute of Medical Psychology, Center for Psychosocial Medicine, University Hospital Heidelberg, Bergheimer Str. 20, 69115, Heidelberg, Germany.
Jens KesslerCenter of Pain Therapy and Palliative Care Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Martin StoffelInstitute of Medical Psychology, Center for Psychosocial Medicine, University Hospital Heidelberg, Bergheimer Str. 20, 69115, Heidelberg, Germany.
Martin WeberInterdisciplinary Palliative Care Unit, III. Department of Medicine, University Medical Center of the Johannes Gutenberg University of Mainz, Mainz, Germany.
Hubert J BardenheuerCenter of Pain Therapy and Palliative Care Medicine, Department of Anesthesiology, University Hospital Heidelberg, Heidelberg, Germany.
Beate DitzenInstitute of Medical Psychology, Center for Psychosocial Medicine, University Hospital Heidelberg, Bergheimer Str. 20, 69115, Heidelberg, Germany.
Marco WarthInstitute of Medical Psychology, Center for Psychosocial Medicine, University Hospital Heidelberg, Bergheimer Str. 20, 69115, Heidelberg, Germany. marco.warth@med.uni-heidelberg.de.ORCID http://orcid.org/0000-0003-3277-5516

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

purposeAlthough research on psychosocial interventions in palliative care provided evidence for their effectiveness regarding patient-reported outcomes, few studies have examined their psychobiological effects yet. Therefore, the purpose of the present work as part of an overarching study was to investigate differential effects of music therapy versus mindfulness on subjective distress and both neuroendocrine and autonomic stress biomarkers.

methodsA total of 104 patients from two palliative care units were randomly assigned to three sessions of either music therapy or mindfulness. Before and after the second session (completed by 89 patients), participants rated their momentary distress and provided three saliva samples for cortisol and α-amylase analysis. Furthermore, photoplethysmography recordings were continuously assessed to calculate mean heart rate and heart rate variability. Data were analyzed using multilevel modeling of all available data and sensitivity analysis with multiply imputed data.

resultsBetween 67 and 75% of the maximally available data points were included in the primary analyses of psychobiological outcomes. Results showed a significant time*treatment effect on distress (b =  - 0.83, p = .02) indicating a greater reduction in the music therapy group. No interaction effects were found in psychobiological outcomes (all p > .05), but multilevel models revealed a significant reduction in cortisol (b =  - 0.06, p = .01) and mean heart rate (b =  - 7.89, p = .05) over time following either intervention.

conclusionFindings suggest a beneficial effect music therapy on distress while no differential psychobiological treatment effects were found. Future studies should continue to investigate optimal stress biomarkers for psychosocial palliative care research.

trial registrationGerman Clinical Trials Register (DRKS)-DRKS00015308 (date of registration: September 7, 2018).

Indexed as

Hospice and Palliative Care NursingMindfulnessMusicMusic TherapyHeart RateHumansPalliative CareCancerMindfulnessMusic therapyOncologyPalliative careStress

Identifiers

PMID34355279
PMCPMC8636432

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Registered trials

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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.