Effect of virtual reality therapy on anxiety and symptom distress among children with cancer on chemotherapy

Abstract

Childhood cancer constitutes 0.5% in 4.6% of all cancers. The overall newlineincidence of childhood cancer varies between 50 to 200 per million children newlineworldwide. Leukemia is the most common among all cancers, followed by newlinelymphomas and tumors of the central nervous system. Ionizing radiation and newlineingestion of hormones diethylstilbestrol during pregnancy is a definite risk newlinefactor along with genetic inheritance and individual susceptibility. An estimate newlineof global cancer observation revealed that, 280,000 children and adolescents newline(up to 19 years) were diagnosed with cancer worldwide. Among them 110,000 newlinechildren died.Virtual reality therapy was used to treat a variety of medical. newlineSurgical, psychiatric and neurocognitive conditions, including pain, anxiety newlinedisorders, schizophrenia, eating disorders, medical procedures, vestibular newlinedisorder and movement disorder and stroke rehabilitation. Virtual reality has newlinebecome portable, vivid and immersive to be used in a broad range of inpatient newlineand outpatient departments. The present study was undertaken to analyze the newlineeffect of virtual reality therapy on anxiety and symptom distress among newlinechildren with cancer on chemotherapy because the technology currently newlinehaving s significant impact on the society and has a therapeutic effectiveness. newlineCONCLUSION: newlineCancer demands an adequate management of anxiety and symptom distress newlineamong children with cancer as it will enhance the quality of life of children and newlineimproves the treatment outcome. The present study strongly supports the newlineeffectiveness of virtual reality therapy on reduction of anxiety and symptom newlinedistress. Along with the individualized guidance and counseling to the children newlinehad a better treatment adherence, as VRT provides a cognitive level of newlinedistraction from the problem experienced. Further studies are needed to newlineinvestigate the long term effect and treatment outcomes of VRT on children newlinewith cancer.VRT is feasible, cost effective intervention to reducing anxiety and newlinesymptom distress among children with cancer.