Does Digital Rubbing Massage-Pain Relief (DRM Pain Relief) Affect Breast Cancer Patients’ Pain, Comfort, and Quality of Life?

Abstract

Introduction The incidence of breast cancer in Indonesia is the highest among types of cancer in women, with an estimated pain prevalence of 40%–89%. More than 50% of cancer patients suffer from pain that has not been resolved. Cancer pain's impact will affect the comfort level and quality of life. Objectives The purpose of this study was to analyze the effectiveness of DRM Pain Relief on the degree of pain, comfort, and quality of life among breast cancer patients. Methods The research was a true experimental study with pre-test and post-test designs with a control group. The population was all breast cancer patients attending hospitals in Semarang and Pekalongan Districts. The research subjects were 64 respondents who met the inclusion and exclusion criteria. Respondents were selected randomly and divided into two groups, namely 32 in the treatment group (DRM Pain Relief application) and 32 in the control group (only received drugs as conventional therapy in the hospital). Data were analyzed using a multivariate test. Results The application of DRM Pain Relief was effective in reducing the degree of pain ( p < .001), and effectively increasing comfort ( p < .001), as well as improving the quality of life of breast cancer patients in the components of improvement in symptom status, functional status, and global quality of life with p-value <.001, .003,  < .001, respectively. Conclusion The DRM Pain Relief effectively reduces the degree of pain, increases comfort, and improves the quality of life of breast cancer patients.