Effects of a full-body massage on pain intensity, anxiety, and physiological relaxation in Taiwanese patients with metastatic bone pain: a pilot study.

Bone involvement, a hallmark of advanced cancer, results in intolerable pain, substantial morbidity, and impaired quality of life in 34%-45% of cancer patients. Despite the publication of 15 studies on massage therapy (MT) in cancer patients, little is known about the longitudinal effects of MT and safety in cancer patients with bone metastasis. The purpose of this study was to describe the feasibility of MT and to examine the effects of MT on present pain intensity (PPI), anxiety, and physiological relaxation over a 16- to 18-hour period in 30 Taiwanese cancer patients with bone metastases.

Systematic review of massage intervention for adult patients with cancer: a methodological perspective.

Findings from studies of massage, one of the most commonly used nonpharmacological nursing interventions for managing cancer pain, are inconsistent. The purpose of this article was to elucidate the methodological underpinnings of these inconsistencies with a systematic review of study design, methods, and massage efficacy in adult patients with cancer. A total of 15 studies published in English between 1986 and 2006 were identified by searching in 6 electronic databases.