The Tapping Evidence Base
Cancer & Serious Illness · Anxiety · Depression · Stress & Cortisol

The Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) in Improving the Mental Health of Breast Cancer Patients: Systematic Literature Review

Hasibuan, S.H., Said, F.M., Rashid, N.A., Huda, A., Mulyani, S. · African Journal of Biomedical Research · 2025

Systematic reviewPreliminary✓ Source-checked📍 Indonesia
In plain English. Researchers reviewed published studies on tapping (EFT) and its spiritual variant (SEFT) for breast cancer patients' mental health. Across the studies they found, both approaches reduced stress, anxiety, and depression, with the spiritual version potentially helping elderly patients more. As a literature review rather than new data collection, its conclusions are only as strong as the underlying studies, many of which are small and uncontrolled.

What they found

A systematic literature review of PubMed and Google Scholar articles (2019-2024) found EFT and SEFT effective for reducing stress, anxiety, and depression in breast cancer patients, with SEFT's spiritual component offering additional benefit especially for elderly patients.

How the study worked

Who took partbreast cancer patients
What they didThis systematic review gathered and appraised the body of published studies against a defined method.
Measured withmental health outcomes (anxiety, depression, stress) reported across reviewed studies

💡 Where this could help

Think of a woman mid-treatment for breast cancer, exhausted and anxious, especially an older patient for whom the spiritual variant (SEFT) might resonate more deeply. If these early findings continue to hold up, it points toward tapping as a gentle add-on alongside oncology care — a technique she could learn once and then use herself, at no cost, in the waiting room or at home between infusions, whenever formal counseling isn't available.

🔬 What to study next

Look at whether tapping's psychological benefit in breast cancer patients tracks a physiological cascade — cortisol and inflammatory markers (IL-6, CRP) drawn during chemotherapy cycles, paired with sleep actigraphy and heart rate variability, to see if calmer mood coincides with calmer biology during a uniquely stressful medical period. Also worth testing scaled delivery, such as a nurse-led group or app-based version offered at the point of diagnosis, and whether the spiritual (SEFT) variant's added benefit for older patients holds up in a randomized head-to-head against standard EFT.

The full record

DesignSystematic review
Populationbreast cancer patients
Outcome measuresmental health outcomes (anxiety, depression, stress) reported across reviewed studies
JournalAfrican Journal of Biomedical Research
Year2025
CountryIndonesia
LanguageEnglish
MethodEFT / tapping
Publication typeReview or meta-analysis
Verification✓ Confirmed against the primary source

Read the original study →

Cite this study

APA

Hasibuan, S.H., Said, F.M., Rashid, N.A., Huda, A., & Mulyani, S. (2025). The Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) in Improving the Mental Health of Breast Cancer Patients: Systematic Literature Review. African Journal of Biomedical Research. https://doi.org/10.53555/ajbr.v28i1s.6175

This record is part of the Tapping Evidence Base — an openly-sourced, fully-referenced directory of the research on EFT/tapping. Explore more studies on Cancer & Serious Illness · Anxiety · Depression · Stress & Cortisol

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THE TAPPING EVIDENCE BASE Cancer & Serious Illness ✓ Systematic review WHAT THEY FOUND A systematic literature review of PubMed andGoogle Scholar articles (2019-2024) foundEFT and SEFT effective for… Systematic review Hasibuan · 2025 · evidence.thetappingsolution.com