Palliative medicine
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Palliative medicine · Jan 2004
Review Meta AnalysisDoes psychosocial intervention improve survival in cancer? A meta-analysis.
There is growing evidence that positive psychosocial intervention improves the wellbeing of cancer patients. Two meta-analyses conducted to date confirmed a significant small-to-moderate effect on quality of life. Previous randomized trials reported that psychosocial intervention also improved survival. However, more recent trials failed to detect a difference in survival. A systematic review of randomized trials that have examined the effectiveness of psychosocial intervention in cancer patients in terms of survival prolongation was conducted. ⋯ Psychosocial intervention does not prolong survival in cancer. This meta-analysis can not rule out small effect sizes because of the small number of trials and small trial sizes.