Authors
1 Department of Nursing,
2 Nursing and Midwifery Care Research Center, Department of Psychiatric Nursing, School of Nursing and Midwifery
3 Department of Oncology, Seyed‑Al‑Shohada Hospital, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran
Abstract
Background and Objectives: Due to the increasing number of elderly and an increase in the
number of cases of cancer by age, cancer is a common problem in the elderly. For elderly
patients with cancer, the disease and its treatment can have long‑term negative effects on
their quality of life (QoL). The purpose of this study was to evaluate the effect of progressive
muscle relaxation, body image and deep diaphragmatic breathing on the QoL in the elderly
with cancer. Materials and Methods: This study was a randomized controlled trial in which
50 elderly patients with breast or prostate cancer were randomized into study and control
groups. Progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, and deep diaphragmatic breathing
were given to the study group, but not to the control group. The effect of the progressive
muscle relaxation, guided imagery and deep diaphragmatic breathing was measured at
three different time points. European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer
and QoL Questionnaire‑Core questionnaires was completed before, after and 6 weeks after
the intervention for the patients in both groups simultaneously. The data were analyzed
by SPSS. Results: There was statistically significant improvement in QoL (P < 0.001) and
physical functioning (P < 0.001) after progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery and deep
diaphragmatic breathing intervention. Conclusions: The findings indicated that concurrent
application of progressive muscle relaxation, guided imagery, and deep diaphragmatic
breathing would improve QoL in the elderly with breast or prostate cancer.
Keywords
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