Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis

Introduction Breast cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide. Both the disease itself and the side effects of its treatments significantly impair the quality of life (QoL) of women with BC. Non-pharmacological therapies (NPTs), including exercise therapies, mindfulness-based int...

Full description

Saved in:
Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Meng Tian, Deqi Zhang, Tianwei Lou
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: BMJ Publishing Group 2025-08-01
Series:BMJ Open
Online Access:https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/8/e097554.full
Tags: Add Tag
No Tags, Be the first to tag this record!
_version_ 1849233659474739200
author Meng Tian
Deqi Zhang
Tianwei Lou
author_facet Meng Tian
Deqi Zhang
Tianwei Lou
author_sort Meng Tian
collection DOAJ
description Introduction Breast cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide. Both the disease itself and the side effects of its treatments significantly impair the quality of life (QoL) of women with BC. Non-pharmacological therapies (NPTs), including exercise therapies, mindfulness-based interventions, cognitive therapies, acupoint therapies, and other complementary therapies, are increasingly being employed to improve the QoL for women with BC. However, the effects and acceptability of NPTs may vary depending on the treatment phases (intra-treatment and post-treatment) of the women with BC. This systematic review and network meta-analysis aims to compare the effects and acceptability of NPTs among women with BC across different treatment phases.Methods Relevant randomised controlled trials will be systematically searched in 7 databases, including the Cochrane Library, Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Biomedical Literature Database, and Wanfang, covering the period from their inception to February 2025. Two researchers will independently assess the risk of bias using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool for Randomised Trials 2.0. The network meta-analysis will be conducted using STATA 16.0. The assessments of heterogeneity, inconsistency, publication bias, evidence quality and sensitivity analysis will also be conducted. The subgroup network meta-analysis will be conducted based on the treatment phases of women with BC.Ethics and dissemination This protocol does not need approval from an ethics committee, as it is conducted based on previous research data. The results will be disseminated via peer-reviewed publications.Prospero registration number PROSPERO CRD42023476312.
format Article
id doaj-art-0539e354d1ff40b7a4fe8ff87f5a2997
institution Kabale University
issn 2044-6055
language English
publishDate 2025-08-01
publisher BMJ Publishing Group
record_format Article
series BMJ Open
spelling doaj-art-0539e354d1ff40b7a4fe8ff87f5a29972025-08-20T04:10:18ZengBMJ Publishing GroupBMJ Open2044-60552025-08-0115810.1136/bmjopen-2024-097554Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysisMeng Tian0Deqi Zhang1Tianwei Lou24 Shandong Institute of Sport Science, Jinan, China2 College of Rehabilitation Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Jinan City, Shandong, China1 Department of Rehabilitation Medicine, Shandong University of Traditional Chinese Medicine Affiliated Hospital, Jinan, Shandong, ChinaIntroduction Breast cancer (BC) is the most frequently diagnosed cancer worldwide. Both the disease itself and the side effects of its treatments significantly impair the quality of life (QoL) of women with BC. Non-pharmacological therapies (NPTs), including exercise therapies, mindfulness-based interventions, cognitive therapies, acupoint therapies, and other complementary therapies, are increasingly being employed to improve the QoL for women with BC. However, the effects and acceptability of NPTs may vary depending on the treatment phases (intra-treatment and post-treatment) of the women with BC. This systematic review and network meta-analysis aims to compare the effects and acceptability of NPTs among women with BC across different treatment phases.Methods Relevant randomised controlled trials will be systematically searched in 7 databases, including the Cochrane Library, Embase, PubMed, Web of Science, China National Knowledge Infrastructure, China Biomedical Literature Database, and Wanfang, covering the period from their inception to February 2025. Two researchers will independently assess the risk of bias using the Cochrane Risk of Bias Tool for Randomised Trials 2.0. The network meta-analysis will be conducted using STATA 16.0. The assessments of heterogeneity, inconsistency, publication bias, evidence quality and sensitivity analysis will also be conducted. The subgroup network meta-analysis will be conducted based on the treatment phases of women with BC.Ethics and dissemination This protocol does not need approval from an ethics committee, as it is conducted based on previous research data. The results will be disseminated via peer-reviewed publications.Prospero registration number PROSPERO CRD42023476312.https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/8/e097554.full
spellingShingle Meng Tian
Deqi Zhang
Tianwei Lou
Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis
BMJ Open
title Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis
title_full Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis
title_fullStr Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis
title_full_unstemmed Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis
title_short Non-pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer: a protocol for a systematic review and network meta-analysis
title_sort non pharmacological therapies for quality of life in women with breast cancer a protocol for a systematic review and network meta analysis
url https://bmjopen.bmj.com/content/15/8/e097554.full
work_keys_str_mv AT mengtian nonpharmacologicaltherapiesforqualityoflifeinwomenwithbreastcanceraprotocolforasystematicreviewandnetworkmetaanalysis
AT deqizhang nonpharmacologicaltherapiesforqualityoflifeinwomenwithbreastcanceraprotocolforasystematicreviewandnetworkmetaanalysis
AT tianweilou nonpharmacologicaltherapiesforqualityoflifeinwomenwithbreastcanceraprotocolforasystematicreviewandnetworkmetaanalysis