The Therapeutic Massage for Elderly Women with Colorectal Cancer: Effects on Pain, Fatigue, And Anxiety
Keywords:
Therapeutic Massage, pain intensity, fatigue, AnxietyAbstract
Therapeutic massage (TM) can be used to relieve colorectal cancer pain, fatigue and anxiety in elderly patients. It can promote relaxation and relieve tension by applying physical pressure to muscles, tendons, and connective tissues at specific sites. This study aims to evaluate the effect of therapeutic massage on pain intensity, fatigue and anxiety level among elderly women with colorectal cancer. Design: Quasi-experimental design used to test whether a treatment or intervention affects patient outcomes. Sample: A purposive sample of 60 elderly colorectal cancer patients; 30 study and 30 control groups. Setting: the study was conducted at National Cancer Institute (inpatients and outpatient). Study tools: (1) Structured Personal and Medical Data Questionnaire, (2) Subjective & Objective colorectal cancer Pain intensity Assessment including: part1: Subjective pain intensity assessment, part2: Objective pain intensity assessment (Visual Analogue Scale (VAS): Numeric Rating Scale (NRS) and Faces Pain Rating Scale (FRS), (3) Hirai Cancer Fatigue Scale (HCFS), (4) Geriatric Anxiety Scale (GAS). Results: 40% of elderly women patients aged 65 to less than 70 years old in the study group with a mean age 67.6±5.5 years and 36.7% of women patients aged 60 to less than 65 years old in the control group with a mean age 67.5±5.6 years. 96.7%, had severe pain and 73.4% had moderate to severe anxiety during pretest which was decreased to be 96.7% had intermittent pain & 80% had mild to moderate anxiety in the study group after implementation of Therapeutic massage as compared to 46.7% of elderly patients who suffered from severe pain and 100% who suffered from moderate to severe anxiety posttest in the control group whereas Elderly women patients suffered from fatigue pre and post massage in the study and control groups. Conclusion: Therapeutic massage has a positive effect on (pain & anxiety) among colorectal cancer patients. Recommendation: application of TM on a large-scale sample to gain more generalization & endorsement of it as a routine nursing care in medical oncology units
Downloads
Metrics
References
Avila J.(2024). Marital status, frailty, and survival in older adults with cancer. J Geriatr Oncol;14(8).
Allam A. R. et al.(2024). Colonoscopy screening for colorectal cancer in Egypt: a nationwide cross-sectional study. BMC Cancer, 24:131. https://bmccancer.biomedcentral.com/articles/10.1186/s12885-024-11828-3.
Alhamdoun A. and Alomari K.(2020). The Effects of Massage Therapy on Symptom Management among Patients with Cancer: A Systematic Review, International Research Journal of Oncology 3(2): 38-45.
Aaldriks A.(2020). Frailty and malnutrition predictive of mortality risk in older patients with advanced colorectal cancer receiving chemotherapy. J Geriatr Oncol 4: 218–226.
Bischof1 E.and Hurni B. (2021). Management of Elderly and Old Cancer Patients , Geriatric Oncology. Healthbook TIMES Oncology Hematology. 1;(10):28-33.
Cleeland C.S. & Mendoza TR.(2020). Assessing symptom distress in cancer patients: the M.D. Anderson Symptom inventory. Cancer ;89(7):1634–1646.
Duthie K. and Strohschein F. (2019). Living with cancer and other chronic conditions:Patients’ perceptions of their healthcare experience. Canadian Oncology Nursing Journal;27(1).
Elshami1 et al.(2022). Awareness of colorectal cancer signs and symptoms: a national cross-sectional study from Palestine. . BMC Public Health ; 22:866.
Fallon M.(2020). Neuropathic pain in cancer. British Journal of Anaesthesia 111 (1): 105–11.Foad, M & Ramez, A (2018). Experience from a multicentre stroke. Cross nationally. J. Soc. Issues 2018, 58, 749–765.
Furlan A.D.et al. (2021).Complementary and alternative therapies for back pain II. Evid Rep Technol Assess (Full Rep);1–764.
Hirai K. et al.(2015).Development of the Hirai Cancer Fatigue Scale: Testing its reliability and validity.Eur J Oncol Nurs,19(4).Hatem, W, Sandra, C & Ahmed, G. (2019). The impact of a stroke clinical pathway on outcomes of acute stroke care. Neurology Asia, 23(3), 217-225.
Hayes MHS, Patterson DG. (2020).Experimental development of the graphic rating method. Psychological Bulletin;18:98–99.
Imanishi J.(2023). Effect of Massage Therapy on Anxiety and Depression in Cancer Patients.Available at: https://www.researchgate.net/publication/278662133_Effect_of_Massage_Therapy_on_Anxiety_and_Depression_in_Cancer_Patients.
Jalalodini A.(2019). The Effectiveness of Slow-Stroke Back Massage on Hospitalization Anxiety and Physiological Parameters in School-Age Children: A Randomized Clinical Trial Study. Iran Red Crescent Med J. 2016 Nov; 18(11).
Kutner j.& SmithM (2020). Massage therapy vs. simple touch to improve pain and mood in patients with advanced cancer, Annals of Internal Medicine; 149: 369-379.
Lianqi L.(2021). Sleep Disturbances in Cancer. Psychiatr Ann.; 38(9): 627–634.Available at: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC3021374/pdf/nihms236035.pdf.
Matsuda T. & Yamashita1 K. (2021). Current status and trend of laparoscopic right hemicolectomy for colon cancer. Ann Gastroenterol Surg ;4:521–527.
Massoumeh B. and Farideh B.(2021). Effect of Slow-Stroke Back Massage on Anxiety of Older Women With Cancer Undergoing Chemotherapy, Journal of Client-Centered Nursing Care, Tehran, Iran, vol. 2, no. 2, pp. 115-122.
Musarezaie A, Khaledi F, Esfahani HN, et al. (2024).Factors affecting quality of life and fatigue in patients with leukemia under chemotherapy. J Educ Health Promot;3:64.
Shengnan S. (2023). Massage therapy significantly improves cancer-related fatigue in cancer patients: a meta-analysis of randomized controlled trials. Support Care Cancer;31(8):464.
Segal, D. L. (2011). Psychometric properties of the Geriatric Anxiety Scale: Comparison to the Beck Anxiety Inventory and Geriatric Anxiety Inventory. Clinical Gerontologist:The Journal of Aging and Mental Health, 34(1), 21–33. https://doi.org/10.1080/07317115.2011.524600.
Stuart A.(2023). Massage Therapy Styles and Health Benefits.Available at: https://www.webmd.com/balance/massage-therapy-styles-and-health-benefits.
Sung H, Ferlay J. and Siegel R. L .(2021): GLOBOCAN estimates of incidence and mortality worldwide for 36 cancers in 185 countries. CA Cancer J Clin;71(03):209–249. doi: 10.3322/caac.21660. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar].
Scott D. ( 2020). Population-based study of the prevalence of family history of
cancer: Implications for cancer screening and prevention. Genet Med ; 8(9): 571–575.
Thomas, L. (2023). Control Groups and Treatment Groups Uses & Examples. SCRIBBR. https://www.scribbr.com/methodology/control-group/.
Takada K.& Shimokawa M. (2019). Association of Low Body Mass Index With Poor Clinical Outcomes After Resection of Non-small Cell Lung Cancer. Anticancer Research Journal, 39: 1987-1996.
Werthmann P. (2025). Efficacy and safety of massage for postoperative stress in colorectal cancer patients: a randomized, controlled, three-arm trial. Mayo Clinic.Available at https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/oncology/articles/10.3389/fonc.2025.1439420/full.
Downloads
Published
How to Cite
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
You are free to:
- Share — copy and redistribute the material in any medium or format
- Adapt — remix, transform, and build upon the material for any purpose, even commercially.
Terms:
- Attribution — You must give appropriate credit, provide a link to the license, and indicate if changes were made. You may do so in any reasonable manner, but not in any way that suggests the licensor endorses you or your use.
- No additional restrictions — You may not apply legal terms or technological measures that legally restrict others from doing anything the license permits.
