Music Therapy or Book Discussion in Improving Quality of Life in Young Patients Undergoing Stem Cell Transplant

OBJECTIVES:

- Test the efficacy, in terms of resilience and quality of life, of a therapeutic music
video (TMV) intervention vs listening and discussing books on tape (control group) for
adolescents and young adults (AYA) undergoing autologous or allogeneic transplantation
for cancer.

- Qualitatively describe the perception of helpfulness and meaningfulness of a sub-group
of both interventions for AYA and family members 100 days post-transplant.

OUTLINE: This is a randomized, controlled, limited multicenter study. Patients are
randomized to 1 of 2 arms.

- Arm I (books on tape [control group]): Patients undergo six 1-hour sessions twice a
week for 3 weeks with a trained counselor in which they choose up to 3 books on CD and
listen to the book and/or discuss their impressions and thoughts about the contents
with the counselor. Patients are provided with a portable CD player to listen to the
books during their hospitalization.

- Arm II (therapeutic music video [TMV ] intervention): Patients undergo six 1-hour
sessions twice a week for 3 weeks with a music therapist, designed specifically for the
pre-transplant and acute phase of treatment. Phases of patient participation include
song writing, recording the song with a digital accompaniment track, completing a video
layout worksheet, taking photos or making drawings for the video, viewing clip art and
pictures on a computer, and sharing the final video with family members and hospital
staff.

In both arms, patients complete questionnaires before and after sessions 2, 4, and 6 with
the music therapist. Patients also complete computer-based questionnaires before
hospitalization, after session six during hospitalization, and at 100 days
post-transplantation.

PROJECTED ACCRUAL: A total of 130 patients will be accrued for this study.

DISEASE CHARACTERISTICS:

- Diagnosis of an oncology condition requiring allogeneic or autologous transplantation

- Receiving or planning to receive a myeloablative treatment regimen and 1 of the
following:

- Marrow transplantation

- Peripheral stem cell transplantation

- Cord blood stem cell transplantation

- Patients with cancers that do not usually occur in childhood/adolescent or young
adult populations (e.g., breast or prostate cancer) are not eligible

PATIENT CHARACTERISTICS:

- Able to read and speak English

- English does not need to be the primary language

- Able to participate in the sessions as evaluated for alertness and engagement by the
music therapist

- No cognitive impairments that would make it difficult to participate in the
intervention or complete questionnaires

- Not married and not a parent

PRIOR CONCURRENT THERAPY:

- See Disease Characteristics

- Concurrent therapy for pain control or relief of other symptoms allowed