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Dissertation - World Federation of Music Therapy

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ENGLISH SUMMARY<br />

Introduction and motivation<br />

Cancer rehabilitation is an extremely important area within the health care system.<br />

After termination <strong>of</strong> medical treatment most cancer survivors have very few options<br />

for support, especially if they need psychological or psychosocial support. In<br />

Denmark the large-scale, private organization Kræftens Bekæmpelse <strong>of</strong>fer support<br />

groups and verbal counselling, and all cancer survivors are – in principle – entitled to<br />

a one week stay at Dallund Castle, a rehabilitation centre open to people living with<br />

all types <strong>of</strong> cancer, and their relatives. Besides this resource, there are small-scale<br />

private organizations supporting cancer survivors in different ways. In Denmark,<br />

music therapy has not yet been integrated into psychological or psychosocial support<br />

work, and the clinical protocol in this study was the first attempt to investigate how<br />

cancer survivors might benefit from music therapy – in this case The Bonny Method<br />

<strong>of</strong> Guided Imagery and <strong>Music</strong> (BMGIM). Six volunteers, all women recruited by<br />

announcements in local oncology wards and Kræftens Bekæmpelses counselling<br />

<strong>of</strong>fice, participated in the study. Videnscenter for Forskning i Alternativ Behandling<br />

(ViFAB; Centre for Research and Information on Complementary Therapies in<br />

Denmark) funded the clinical part <strong>of</strong> the study. Abroad, especially in the USA, Great<br />

Britain, Australia and Germany, some studies and programs have indicated that<br />

BMGIM has a potential as a supportive psychological and psychosocial intervention<br />

with cancer survivors. The inspiration and motivation for this study was grounded in<br />

the results and reports from these studies and programs. This study is a systematic<br />

investigation <strong>of</strong> how BMGIM may influence selected variables and aspects <strong>of</strong><br />

problems experienced by cancer survivors, as expressed in the main research<br />

question:<br />

What is the influence <strong>of</strong> ten individual BMGIM sessions on mood and quality <strong>of</strong> life in<br />

cancer survivors?<br />

In order to operationalize this question the investigation addresses the following sub-<br />

questions systematically:<br />

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