War and Cancer: Exploring Patient Narratives in a Randomized Integrative Oncology Study

The current war in Israel has affected quality of life (QoL)-related concerns among patients with cancer. Integrative oncology (IO) provides complementary medicine within supportive and palliative care. The study examined an IO program in northern Israel for cancer and war-related concerns.

This qualitative study, nested within a prospective randomized controlled trial, examined patients undergoing oncology and palliative care expressing cancer and war-related QoL concerns referred by oncology healthcare providers to an IO program. Patients were randomized to manual-relaxation with (Group A) or without (Group B) acupuncture. Narratives were recorded in MYCaW (Measure Yourself Concerns and Well-being) questionnaires immediately and after 24 h. Narrative excerpts were qualitatively analyzed using ATLAS.Ti software for systematic coding.

Patient narratives (Group A, 67; Group B, 58) focused primarily on themes which included a sense of calmness and reduced emotional distress (e.g., stress, anxiety, worries, nervousness), more prominently in Group B (manual-relaxation only; 55/56 immediately/after 24 h); and reduced pain severity, more so in Group A (with acupuncture; 19/24). Most excerpts described improved QoL in both groups (142/147, 97%) immediately after IO treatments, less so at 24 h (103/135).

Narratives of patients facing cancer- and war-related QoL challenges due to the ongoing war in Israel describe a beneficial impact of IO treatments, both immediately and after 24 h. Manual-relaxation without acupuncture was more likely to improve emotional concerns, with pain relief more apparent with the addition of acupuncture. Further qualitative and quantitative research is needed to explore these findings.