Trial reportSupportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer2022
Feasibility and acceptability of virtual reality for cancer pain in people receiving palliative care: a randomised cross-over study.
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. It is linked to 3 registered trials, which are not on this map. Cited by 29 papers, 4 of them syntheses 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.
Study With Cancer Patients at the CECON Foundation's Pain Therapy and Palliative Care Service: Meditation With Immersive Virtual Reality for Pain Relief
Virtual Intelligence for Transformative Lifestyle Solutions in Pain
Virtual Reality Nature Therapy for Palliative Patients and Caregivers in Saudi Arabia: A Randomized Controlled Trial to Support Quality of Life and Cultural Adaptation
Who cites it
29 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 56 citations in OpenAlex.
- Virtual reality as a non-pharmacological adjuvant for anxiety in oncology care: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026Pooled it
- OncoVR - Virtual Reality in Oncology for Patient-centered Care: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis.Current oncology reports · 2026Pooled it
- Application of virtual reality for supportive care in cancer patients: a systematic review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2024Pooled it
- Efficacy of virtual reality for pain relief in medical procedures: a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC medicine · 2024Pooled it
- Effect of Immersive Virtual Reality on Chemotherapy-Related Side Effects in Patients Receiving Paclitaxel-Carboplatin With or Without Bevacizumab: 2-Arm Randomized Controlled Trial.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Trial
- Virtual reality for outpatient management of cancer pain: a pilot dosing study.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025Trial
- An Exploratory EEG Analysis on the Effects of Virtual Reality in People with Neuropathic Pain Following Spinal Cord Injury.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Trial
- Effect of virtual reality-based education on death literacy and health among family caregivers: an experimental study.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026Article
- The Impact of Patient and Professional Users' Involvement in Implementation for Virtual Reality in Hospitalised Palliative Cancer Patients in a German Cancer Centre-A Qualitative Analysis.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Integrating Immersive Virtual Reality Meditation into Palliative Oncology: A Randomized Trial Protocol for Evaluating Pain Relief and Quality of Life.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Article
- Application of digital technology intervention in palliative care: a scoping review.BMC palliative care · 2025Article
- The effects of VR/AR/MR-based interventions on symptom management among adult cancer survivors receiving active treatments: a systematic review and meta-analysis.Journal of cancer survivorship : research and practice · 2025Review
- Targeted Digital Health Intervention in End-of-Life and Hospice Care: A Scoping Review.Journal of advanced nursing · 2025Article
- Dropout Rate of Participants with Cancer in Randomized Clinical Trials That Use Virtual Reality to Manage Pain-A Systematic Review with Meta-Analysis and Meta-Regression.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Review
- Virtual Reality Interventions and Chronic Pain: Scoping Review.Journal of medical Internet research · 2025Article
- Experience of breast cancer patients participating in a virtual reality psychological rehabilitation: a qualitative study.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025Article
- A scoping review of digital technology applications in palliative care.BMC palliative care · 2024Article
- The Interplay Between Health Disparities and Acceptability of Virtual Reality: A Survey Study.Cyberpsychology, behavior and social networking · 2024Article
- Virtual reality technology for pain management in advanced cancer.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2024Article
- Virtual Reality Videos for Symptom Management in Hospice and Palliative Care.Mayo Clinic proceedings. Digital health · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
3 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
contextPain management in palliative care remains inadequate; the development of innovative therapeutic options is needed.
objectivesTo determine the feasibility and preliminary effectiveness for larger randomised controlled trials of 3D head-mounted (HMD) virtual reality (VR) for managing cancer pain (CP) in adults.
methodsThirteen people receiving palliative care participated in a single-session randomised cross-over trial, after which they completed a qualitative semi-structured interview. We also compared the effects of 3D HMD VR and 2D screen applications on CP intensity and levels of perceived presence. Feasibility was assessed with recruitment, completion rates and time required to recruit target sample.
resultsAlthough recruitment was slow, completion rate was high (93%). Participants reported that the intervention was acceptable and caused few side effects. Although participants reported significantly reduced CP intensity after 3D HMD VR (1.9 ± 1.8, P = .003) and 2D screen applications (1.5 ± 1.6, P = .007), no significant differences were found between interventions (-.38 ± 1.2, 95% CI: -1.1-.29, P = .23). Participants reported significantly higher levels of presence with the 3D HMD VR compared to 2D screen (60.7 ± SD 12.4 versus 34.3 ± SD 17.1, mean 95% CI: 16.4-40.7, P = .001). Increased presence was associated with significantly lower pain intensity (mean 95% CI: -.04--0.01, P = 0.02).
conclusionsOur preliminary findings support growing evidence that both 3D and 2D virtual applications provide pain relief for people receiving palliative care. Given the relative lack of cybersickness and increasing access to portable VR, we suggest that larger clinical studies are warranted.
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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.