Study suggests a single 20-minute writing session positively impacts a patient’s quality of life

Expressive writing –writing about one’s deepest thoughts and feelings—may help change the way cancer patients think and feel about their disease.  In one of the first studies published in an oncology journal about the benefits of writing therapy, researchers say those who immediately reported changes in thoughts about their illness also reported a better physical quality of life three weeks later.

“Previous research suggests expressive writing may enhance physical and psychological well-being,” said Nancy P. Morgan, M.A., writing clinician and director of the Lombardi Comprehensive Cancer Center’s Arts and Humanities Program.  “But most of those studies involved three to five writing sessions that were conducted in a controlled laboratory setting. Here, we found that just one writing session in a busy cancer clinic where the patients are frequently interrupted can still have a positive impact on patients.”  The study appears in the February issue of The Oncologist. [continue reading…]