Robert Daly, Assistant Attending Physician at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, shared a post on LinkedIn:
“Can virtual integrative medicine influence cancer outcomes?
In a randomized clinical trial of patients receiving systemic cancer therapy, we (Jun Mao, Karolina Bryl, PhD Marco Santos Teles, Ray B.) studied a 12-week virtual integrative medicine program delivered directly to patients in their homes through a digital platform.
The program integrates evidence-based therapies—including mindfulness, yoga, movement, and structured exercise—to help patients manage treatment-related symptoms during active cancer treatment.
In our initial report, the intervention significantly improved:
- Fatigue.
- Anxiety and depression.
- Overall symptom burden.
It also reduced hospitalizations.
In a newly reported survival analysis, we observed a notable difference:
Two-year overall survival was 𝟔𝟗% in the virtual integrative medicine group vs 𝟓𝟑% with enhanced usual care.
While the study was not originally powered for survival and larger confirmatory trials are needed, the findings highlight the potential impact of bringing integrative medicine into patients’ homes through digital care models.
The results also reinforce an important principle in oncology:
Whole-person cancer care-supporting both the physical and psychological experience of treatment-may play an important role in patient outcomes
and underscore the importance of rigorously studying structured exercise and mind-body interventions as part of comprehensive cancer care.
As cancer care increasingly moves beyond the clinic walls, virtual integrative medicine represents an important frontier in oncology.”
Title: Survival Results From the Integrative Medicine for Patient-Reported Outcomes, Values, and Experience (IMPROVE) Trial
Authors: Bobby Daly, Karolina L. Bryl, Marco Santos Teles, Raymond E. Baser, Jun J. Mao
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