Effectiveness of Mindfulness‐Based Cognitive Therapy on Reduction of Depression and Anxiety Symptoms in Mothers of Children With Cancer

Background: Findings demonstrated that parents of children with cancerexperience elevated levels of distress, depression, anxiety, posttraumatic stresssymptoms, and subjective symptoms of stress. In this study, we determinedeffectiveness of Mindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy (MBCT) on reduction ofdepression and anxiety symptoms in mothers of children with cancer.Methods: Four mothers whose children had cancer were diagnosed to havedepression and anxiety symptoms, using Beck Anxiety Inventory, Beck DepressionInventory II, and Structured Clinical Interview for DSM-IV. They were selectedthrough purposeful sampling to participate in this experimental single-case study.After the baseline was determined, subjects attended an eight-session program ofMindfulness-Based Cognitive Therapy.Results: The comparison of baseline and post-test showed that depression andanxiety symptoms decreased through MBCT. Improvement quotient for depressionand anxiety of each subject was good.Conclusion: Data showed that MBCT reduced depression and anxiety symptomsin mothers of children with cancer.