Single and Combined Use of Benson Relaxation Technique and Oxygen Therapy on Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting in Gastric Cancer Patients.

BACKGROUND: Nausea and vomiting are the most common complications of chemotherapy encountered by cancer patients. To alleviate these complications and reduce patients' problems, it is necessary to use complementary methods. OBJECTIVE: The present study aimed to investigate the effect of single and combined use of the Benson relaxation technique and oxygen therapy on chemotherapy-induced nausea, vomiting, and retching in patients with gastric cancer. METHODS: This is a single-blind, four-arm, 2 × 2 factorial-design randomized clinical trial, in which a total of 100 patients with gastric cancer were enrolled and assigned to four groups of relaxation therapy, oxygen therapy, combined therapy, and control (n = 25 in each group) using simple random allocation. The intervention program included the application of Benson relaxation technique, supplemental oxygen therapy, and a combination of both. The control group merely received routine care. Data were collected using the Rhodes Index of Nausea and Vomiting Form 2 (INV-2). RESULTS: The results of the Kruskal-Wallis H test showed that there was a statistically significant difference in the mean scores of nausea, vomiting, retching, and acute phase between the four groups (p = 0.001). However, there was a statistically significant difference only in the mean score of retching in this regard for the delayed phase (p = 0.02). CONCLUSION: Overall, the single use of Benson relaxation technique and the combined use of this technique and oxygen therapy were shown to be more effective in managing chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting.