Reminiscence therapy‐based care program relieves anxiety, depression, and improves quality of life in post‐operational non‐small cell lung cancer patients

Objectives The study aimed to explore the effect of reminiscence therapy‐based care program (RTCP) on anxiety, depression, quality of life (QoL), and survival profiles in post‐operational non‐small cell lung cancer (NSCLC) patients. Methods In this randomized, controlled study, a total of 192 newly diagnosed post‐operational NSCLC patients were randomly assigned to control care program (CCP) group (N = 96) or RTCP group (N = 96), and both groups experienced 12‐month intervention and 36‐month follow‐up without intervention. Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) and European Organization for Research and Treatment of Cancer Quality of Life Questionnaire (QLQ‐C30) were evaluated at baseline (M0), month (M)3, M6, and M12. Results Reduced HADS‐anxiety score at M6 and M12, anxiety rate at M12, and anxiety severity at M6 and M12 were observed in RTCP group compared with CCP group. Additionally, HADS‐depression score was decreased at M6 and M12, while both depression rate and severity were of no difference at each time point between two groups. Furthermore, QLQ‐C30 global health status score at M6 and M12, QLQ‐C30 functions score at M12 were increased, while QLQ‐C30 symptoms score was of no difference at each time point in RTCP group compared with CCP group. Regarding survival profiles, Kaplan–Meier curves indicated that disease‐free survival and overall survival were of no difference between two groups, further multivariate Cox’s proportional hazard regression analysis also observed the same trends. Conclusion RTCP effectively relieves anxiety and depression, improves QoL, but did not prolong survival, suggesting its value as a non‐pharmacological approach for post‐operational NSCLC management.