Hypnosis could ease the pain of breast cancer. U.S. studies show that women with breast cancer which had spread to other parts of the body experienced significantly less pain if they underwent regular bouts of hypnosis.
In the latest study involving 124 women, half were given regular hypnosis as part of group therapy sessions. Their pain levels were then monitored for a year.
Although the therapy did not reduce the frequency of their pain, it did ease discomfort when it struck.
Around 40,000 women a year in Britain are diagnosed with breast cancer. If the tumour becomes metastatic, which means it has spread beyond the breast to other parts of the body such as the bones or liver, some patients can experience significant pain.
It’s believed hypnosis works by altering pain perception. You have to pay attention to pain for it to hurt, so inducing hypnotic relaxation transforms perception in parts of the body, or directs attention elsewhere.
