The Tapping Evidence Base
Cancer & Serious Illness · Anxiety

Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) on patient anxiety in stage II and III breast cancer

Ningsih, S., Karim, D., Sabrian, F. · Online Student Journal (JOM) in Nursing · 2015

Controlled trial👥 30 participants⚖️ vs. non-equivalent control groupPreliminary✓ Source-checked📍 Indonesia
In plain English. Thirty women with stage II or III breast cancer in Indonesia tried EFT to help with the anxiety that comes with a serious cancer diagnosis. Those who did EFT saw a significant drop in anxiety compared to a similar group that didn't. It's a modest-sized quasi-experimental study, so a fully randomized trial would strengthen the evidence.

What they found

30
people took part

The experimental group showed a significant reduction in anxiety (p = 0.005) compared to the non-equivalent control group.

How the study worked

Who took partstage II and III breast cancer patients at Arifin Achmad Hospital, Pekanbaru, Indonesia (n=30)
What they didIn a controlled trial, a tapping group was compared against a separate comparison group.
Compared withnon-equivalent control group
Measured withanxiety questionnaire

💡 Where this could help

If findings like these hold up in larger trials, the promise is simple: a low-cost, self-administered tool that could reach people struggling with cancer & serious illness who can't easily access traditional care — at home, between appointments, or where there aren't enough clinicians to go around.

🔬 What to study next

The natural next step: a larger sample to confirm the effect.

The full record

DesignControlled trial
Participants30 people
Populationstage II and III breast cancer patients at Arifin Achmad Hospital, Pekanbaru, Indonesia
Comparison groupnon-equivalent control group
Outcome measuresanxiety questionnaire
JournalOnline Student Journal (JOM) in Nursing
Year2015
CountryIndonesia
LanguageIndonesian
MethodEFT / tapping
Publication typeStudy / trial
Verification✓ Confirmed against the primary source

Read the original study →

Cite this study

APA

Ningsih, S., Karim, D., & Sabrian, F. (2015). Effectiveness of Emotional Freedom Technique (EFT) on patient anxiety in stage II and III breast cancer. Online Student Journal (JOM) in Nursing.

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

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THE TAPPING EVIDENCE BASE Cancer & Serious Illness 30 participants WHAT THEY FOUND The experimental group showed a significantreduction in anxiety (p = 0.005) compared tothe non-equivalent control… Controlled trial · 30 participants Ningsih · 2015 · evidence.thetappingsolution.com