The Effect of Meditation on Incurable Patients: Well-Being, Quality of Life, and Symptom Control – A Systematic Review

Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to systematically review the literature on the effects of meditation on well-being, quality of life and symptom control in incurable or terminally ill patients. Methods: Pubmed, Web of Science, and Scopus databases were searched for articles published between January 2012 and December 2022, in English, with Participants-adults with terminal or incurable conditions; Interventions-any kind of meditation; Comparators-any control; Outcomes-well-being, quality of life and symptom control; Design-randomized controlled trials and clinical trials. PRISMA-statement guidelines were followed. Risk of bias was analyzed through Cochrane’s Rob-2 tool. A narrative synthesis of results was done. Results: Eight studies were included from three continents: Asia (n=4), Europe (n=2) and América (n=2). Participants were 682, mostly cancer patients. There was a great heterogeneity amongst studies and the overall risk of bias was high. Conclusions: Most studies on the effects of meditation in incurable patients showed: 1) more evidence on well-being and suffering; 2) less evidence on quality of life, anxiety and depression; 3) inconsistency in reducing stress. It is essential to invest in more rigorous studies, with larger samples and longer follow-ups that sharpen with greater robustness the contribution of Meditation to health-related outcomes in vulnerable populations.