Evaluating the psychosocial benefits of mindfulness-based art therapy for breast cancer patients: a preliminary study

This preliminary study evaluates the psychosocial benefits of mindfulness-based art therapy (MAT) for breast cancer patients. A quasi-experimental design was used with 14 participants in the experimental group and 15 in the control group. The experimental group attended eight weekly 3-hour MAT sessions. The control group attended a single 3-hour seminar on coping strategies during cancer, which was conducted after the completion of post-test data collection. Pre- and post-intervention measures assessed coping attitudes, cancer empowerment, grief symptoms, and general health. Data were analyzed using the Mann-Whitney U test and the Wilcoxon signed-rank test. The results indicated that MAT significantly improved coping attitudes, cancer empowerment, and grief symptoms but did not impact general health. These findings suggest that MAT holds potential psychosocial benefits for breast cancer patients, particularly in enhancing cancer empowerment, coping strategies, and reducing grief symptoms. Future research should focus on more comprehensive trials to systematically validate the efficacy of MAT in oncology settings.