CLINICAL TRIAL article
Front. Psychiatry
Sec. Sleep Disorders
Volume 16 - 2025 | doi: 10.3389/fpsyt.2025.1633673
Five-element music therapy based on emotion classification to improve sleep in patients with cancer-related depression: a multi-group randomized controlled trial
Provisionally accepted
- China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
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Background: Sleep disorders are very prevalent in cancer-related depression (CRD) patients, which seriously impacts their quality of life. But the curative effect of drugs is not ideal. Existing five-element music therapy (FEMT) is effective in improving sleep and emotion in cancer patients, but lacks attention to matching the patient's subjective emotion to the music. In this study, we propose the innovative "FEMT based on emotion classification", aiming to validate its effect on improving sleep and emotion in CRD patients, and to compare its efficacy with that of traditional FEMT. Methods: 120 CRD patients were randomly divided into the emotional classification music group (ECMG), the traditional music group (TMG), and the no music group (NMG). The outcome index was the difference between the Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI), Hamilton Depression Scale (HAMD), and Hamilton Anxiety Scale (HAMA) on the 14th and 28th days and baseline. the exploratory indexes were 5-HT, IL-1 β, IL-2, and TNF-α. Results: Both ECMG and TMG significantly improved the total score of PSQI, HAMD, and HAMA. ECMG significantly improved sleep disorder on the 14th day, and improved both sleep disorder and daytime dysfunction on the 28th day.TMG improved overall sleep quality and daytime dysfunction on the 28th day. Conclusion: Both therapies can effectively improve sleep disorders and negative emotions in patients with CRD. The former takes effect faster, while the latter has a more stable curative effect. The two therapies can be used as clinical adjuvant treatment, and personalized intervention programs can be selected according to patients' needs.
Keywords: Sleep, Cancer, Depression, emotion, five-element music, randomized controlled trial
Received: 23 May 2025; Accepted: 04 Sep 2025.
Copyright: © 2025 Wang, Sheng, Xie, Zhao, Zhou, Zhao and Wu. This is an open-access article distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution License (CC BY). The use, distribution or reproduction in other forums is permitted, provided the original author(s) or licensor are credited and that the original publication in this journal is cited, in accordance with accepted academic practice. No use, distribution or reproduction is permitted which does not comply with these terms.
* Correspondence:
Wenjun Wang, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
Nan Zhao, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
Yu Wu, China Academy of Chinese Medical Sciences, Beijing, China
Disclaimer: All claims expressed in this article are solely those of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of their affiliated organizations, or those of the publisher, the editors and the reviewers. Any product that may be evaluated in this article or claim that may be made by its manufacturer is not guaranteed or endorsed by the publisher.