Clinical trial · Interventional
Immersive Multimedia as an Adjunctive Measure for Pain Control in Cancer Patients
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
This study seeks to explore the efficacy of immersive multimedia experiences as a practical adjunctive therapeutic intervention in the self-management of the chronic pain associated with cancer patients. A comparative controlled interventional trial and qualitative interpretative-descriptive exploration will be undertaken with 100 cancer patients who are experiencing chronic pain. Participants will be randomly assigned to either a virtual reality (VR) therapy group or a 2D computer based multimedia control group (50 subjects in each). They will undertake either a series of VR interventions, or 2D computer based multimedia control sessions in their own homes over a period of a month. The intervention will be used daily for a month to enable customization to the therapy and record data over a long enough period of time to account for any individual short-term changes in pain. The VR sessions will consist of using a VR head mounted display (HMD) and computer to explore interactive immersive environments. The control group will be exposed to similar 2D computer based multimedia experiences (without a VR headset) that on home computers. Pre, during, and post pain test scores and quality of sleep assessments will be recorded using standardized tools. In addition to the primary study, a sub-study will be conducted where ten of the subjects who demonstrated the most improvement in their pain using the VR experience will be selected and invited to explore for any measurable changes in neurological activity using pre and post exposure electroencephalography (EEG).
Conditions
Conditions (2)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cancer | Malignant Neoplasm | ALIAS | 0.90 |
| Chronic Pain | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
Interventions
Interventions (2)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2D PC | Other | — | UNRESOLVED |
| Virtual Reality Headset | Device | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (2)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Intervention Group
- description
- Participants will be randomly assigned to the intervention group (50 in total).The VR intervention will be identical for each participant and consist of a PC running the immersive virtual reality application with a Virtual Reality headset 110 degrees field of view head mounted display. The VR will be a set of commercial exploratory virtual environment games designed for the HTC Vive headset. The intervention will be used for one month to enable customization to the therapy and record data over a long enough period of time to account for individual short- term changes in pain experience. Participants will be asked to use the VR therapy every day with a time exposure of 30 minutes for four consecutive weeks. There will be one rest day a week (normally a Sunday) where no therapy is given.
- interventionNames
- Device: Virtual Reality Headset
- type
- ACTIVE_COMPARATOR
- label
- Control Group
- description
- The control group will be exposed to 2D PC equivalent versions of the same multimedia experiences but on their PC screen (without the Virtual Reality headset use). These will be functionally similar to the VR experiences.
- interventionNames
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- All
- Minimum age
- 16 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Age 16 or older * Previous or current medical diagnosis of cancer * Previous or current treatment by chemotherapy, radiotherapy, hormonal * Currently an outpatient (not hospitalized) * Chronic pain sufferer (suffering ongoing daily pain for 3 months or more with a Neuropathic Rating Pain Scale score of 4 or more) * Able to understand the English language, and read and write English * Have normal stereoscopic (binocular) vision * Able to easily move your head up, down, left and right and wear a headset * Have fine motor control in one hand sufficient to operate a joystick/control * Have space at home for a computer and monitor equipment Exclusion Criteria: * Cognitive impairment/inability to control a basic computer VR interface, or complete questionnaires * Receiving regular non-pharmacological pain relieving adjunct therapies for the management of chronic pain * Susceptibility to motion sickness/cyber-sickness * Susceptibility to claustrophobia (fear of confined places) * History of susceptibility to seizures
References
Publications (0)
Data not yet available