Researchers in Boston found that undergoing hypnosis prior to breast biopsies could help ease pain and anxiety associated with the procedure, which uses a large needle to extract suspect tissue for investigation.
The relaxation technique also shortened the length of the procedure, thereby cutting costs, according to the results of a study of 236 women conducted by researchers at Beth Israel Deaconess Medical Center Harvard Medical School in Boston. In the study, patients with suspected breast cancer were assigned either to groups to receive standard care, “empathetic attention” from an individual caregiver or induced self-hypnosis after special training.