ArticleCancers2025
The Role of Engagement in Virtual Reality to Enhance Emotional Well-Being in Breast Cancer Patients: A Mediation Analysis.
Article in Cancers, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
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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.
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Who cites it
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- The influence of virtual reality on anxiety and pain in breast cancer patients: A systematic review.Technical innovations & patient support in radiation oncology · 2026Review
- Personalized Virtual Reality Future Selves Elicit Introspective Brain Activation in Early Substance Use Disorder Recovery.Substance abuse and rehabilitation · 2026Article
- Digital art as a novel medium for health communication: enabling interactive interventions and reconstructing health experiences in public health.Frontiers in public health · 2026Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
introductionVirtual reality (VR) has garnered increasing attention in oncology due to its potential to enhance patient care by alleviating anxiety and emotional distress. The present work evaluates the hypothesis proposed by a recent theoretical model that engagement and the sense of presence are key mediators that impact the degree of beneficial effects that VR may have on the emotional well-being of breast cancer patients.
methodsThis study draws on data from three previous studies comprising 156 breast cancer patients. The psychological variables of well-being studied included emotional dimensions measured before and after exposure to a virtual environment, as well as factors related to immersive qualities. Correlation and mediation analyses were conducted to explore relationships among said variables, namely, one's tendency to be immersed in an activity, engagement, spatial presence, and emotional well-being (i.e., valence and arousal) of the patients.
resultsEngagement plays a crucial mediating role between tendency of immersion, spatial presence, and positive emotional responses. Patients with a greater tendency toward immersion and higher engagement in the virtual environment showed significant emotional improvements. However, tendency of immersion and spatial presence alone did not directly lead to more positive emotional experiences; their influence was primarily exerted through engagement.
conclusionsEngagement emerges as a fundamental lever for maximizing the psychological benefits of VR in oncology. Clinical interventions using VR should prioritize optimizing engagement in immersive environments to improve patients' emotional state throughout their cancer treatment journey.
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