The Effect of Bright White Light on Fatigue Levels in Patients with Gynecological Cancer: A Randomized Control Trial

Abstract

Objectives: Bright white light (BWL) therapy is one of the non-pharmacological methods in the management of fatigue. The aim of the study was to evaluate the effect of BWL on fatigue levels in patients with gynecological cancer who were receiving chemotherapy. Methods: This randomized controlled study were made with 72 women (intervention (n:36) and control (n:36) groups) at gynecologic oncology clinic. Standard BWL at the intensity of 10,000lux was applied to the patients in the intervention group at the same time every day between the second and the eighth days of the chemotherapy cycle. Fatigue levels of all patients (n: 72) were evaluated on the first,ninth and 21st days. Results: The first, ninth, and 21st days general fatigue scores of intervention and control groups was 4.876 ± 0.000;4.384 ± 0.270;4.387 ± 0.258 and 4.876 ± 0.000;5.033 ± 0.270;4.984 ± 0.258, respectively ( p = 0.100). Interference of fatigue with daily life scores was found statistically different between the intervention and control groups in the first, ninth, and 21st day, respectively 4.55 ± 0.26; 3.53 ± 0.23; 3.57 ± 0.22 and 4.95 ± 0.26;4.79 ± 0.23;4.82 ± 0.22 ( p = 0.029). Conclusions: BWL therapy was effective in reducing interference of fatigue with daily life in patients receiving chemotherapy, but did not affect the general fatigue level of the patients. Based on the available data, it is possible that the application of BWL may have a positive effect on general fatigue when the number of samples and the application time are increased. Trial Registration: ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT05009693.