The effect of clinical hypnosis and self-hypnosis on pain intensity in moroccan cancer patients: a pilot study

Background: Pain is a common symptoms in cancer patients. Objectives: This pilot study evaluated the feasibility, acceptability, and potential efficacy of a 4-week hypnosis intervention in cancer patients with pain. Methods: The study was conducted at the Regional Oncology Centre in Agadir, Morocco. The favourable opinion of the Ethics Committee was registered under No.06/19. The study population consisted of 20 patients. Each patient received four hypnosis sessions. Assessments with the Visual Analogue Scale (VAS) for pain and evaluation of opiate and analgesic use were carried out at the beginning and after 2-4 weeks of hypnosis treatment. Results: The mean age of the subjects was 43.25 years (+/- 14.05). For the VAS score at baseline: (35%) had severe pain, (30%) very severe pain and (35%) intolerable pain with an average VAS of 6, 8 and 9 respectively. The mean VAS value decreased from baseline to 3.71 (+/- 0.48), 6.00 (+/- 0.5) and 6.86 (+/- 0.69) respectively at two weeks of follow-up, and 2.43 (+/- 0.5 3), 4.67 (+/- 0.51), 5.14 (+/- 1 .07) respectively at four weeks of follow-up (P<0.001). The results showed a significant decrease in the doses of analgesic drugs consumed by the patients in the study after 2 to 4 weeks of hypnosis treatment compared to baseline (P<0.001). Conclusion: Our results suggest that Clinical hypnosis is feasible and beneficial for pain control in cancer diseases.