Klein, P.J., Schneider, R., & Rhoads, C.J. (2016). Qigong in cancer care: A systematic review and construct analysis of effective Qigong therapy. Supportive Care in Cancer, 24, 3209–3222. 

STUDY PURPOSE: To assess the strength of evidence addressing qigong therapy in supportive cancer care and describe the definition of effective qigong therapy in supportive cancer care

TYPE OF STUDY: Systematic review

• FINAL NUMBER STUDIES INCLUDED = 11
• TOTAL PATIENTS INCLUDED IN REVIEW = 831 patients
• SAMPLE RANGE ACROSS STUDIES: 32–162 patients
• KEY SAMPLE CHARACTERISTICS: Wide variety of geographic regions; heterogeneous populations, of which 50% had breast cancer; wide variations in time of interventions from early treatment to recovery; patients receiving multiple treatment modalities

PHASE OF CARE: Multiple phases of care
 
APPLICATIONS: Elder care

For the purpose of the reviewer’s comments, results were limited to the primary symptom of fatigue and two common concurrent symptoms, depression and fatigue. Five of the 11 studies included fatigue as an outcome measure. Measures improved significantly in groups using some form of qigong or tai chi intervention in four studies and showed no difference in the fifth study. Mixed benefits on depression were reported. No significant differences in sleep were reported. Constructs of qigong therapy were identified as slow, gentle, repetitious, flowing, weight-bearing movements, breath regulation, mindfulness, meditation, energy cultivation, and relaxation.

The authors reported growing research evidence that the practice of qigong has benefits for managing fatigue and improving quality of life in individuals with cancer. However, outcomes on mediation of inflammation/immune support, depression, anxiety, stress, mood, sleep, systolic blood pressure, and survival rate were reported as mixed, and, as only 4 or the 11 studies included samples from the U.S. (N = 389 of 831 participants included in the review [47%]), the validity of the conclusion is questionable for a broader to application to general supportive care across all populations with cancer.

• Limited search
• Limited number of studies included
• Mostly low quality/high risk of bias studies
• High heterogeneity
• Low sample sizes
• The technique requires expert skills to train participants
• Limited access to qigong expertise in U.S.
• Variations in constructs for qigong and limited descriptions of techniques of qigong intervention reported in studies

Logically consistent operational and conceptual definitions of qigong are needed for future research. Additional evidence is needed prior to recommending qigong to be integrated into cancer care. Access to trained qigong practitioners is needed for application to research across broad populations of patients with cancer.