Utilizing complementary therapy to enhance quality of life and reduce stress and fatigue in pediatric cancer patients

Abstract

The international scientific literature presents still incipient results regarding the management of cancer symptom clusters by oncology nursing, especially in pediatric oncology. This is a promising field of investigation for clinical nurses and researchers, and when it is subsidized by medium-range theories, they corroborate the diagnoses and interventions of nursing in oncology, enhancing the science of nursing care. This minireview article aims to discuss the utilizing the hospital clowns as a complementary therapy, to enhance quality of life and reduce stress and fatigue in pediatric cancer patients. Overall, the evidence presented so far pointed out that complementary therapy might help improve the quality of life of pediatric cancer patients, and that complementary therapy usage should be part of a health comprehensive care model, delivering therapeutic approaches that might enhance the mind-body during a pediatric cancer patients’ life span. The results of scientific investigations by nurses, particularly those linked to the basic sciences, play a critical role in advancing personalized care in pediatric integrative oncology.