The POWER of Music as Therapy - "Musicogenic Eutherapeia" - Part 3
by Dr. Arthur W. Harvey, B.S., M.M., D.M.A.
Therapeutic music experiences applicable to oncology involve both passive listening and active music making. An important music with nature visuals program designed by Susan Mazer and Dallas Smith, Healing Health Care Systems, is described in their book Sound Choices: Using Music to Design the Environments in Which You Live, Work, and Heal (23). They were also featured in a Health Week report in 1998, along with others exploring the health applications of therapeutic music.
A study released in the January 2001 edition of Alternative Therapies explored the potential for biological benefits of group drumming music therapy to reverse specific immune system effects of the classical stress response. A team led by Dr. Barry Bittman at the Meadville, Pennsylvania based Mind-Body Wellness Center, in conjunction with Loma Linda University Medical Center researchers in California, found that a single group drumming session conducted in a light-hearted manner fostered self-expression and developed camaraderie, while boosting the activity of Natural Killer (NK) cells that seek out and destroy cancer cells and vitally-infected cells. "The beauty of drumming as opposed to other activities is that you can take it anywhere, teach it in only a few minutes, and offer it to groups of ill and well people alike". Bittman adds, "Composite drumming enables people to enjoy myriad psychological and physical benefits. While immersed in this form of music making, their tension is rapidly transformed into a joyful, moving and enlivening experience."
In modern cancer research, an important goal is to identify therapies that stimulate "cell-mediated" immune responses. This group drumming study appeared to stimulate just such a response. In the group drumming protocol tested by the Bittman team, test subjects showed significant increases in NK cell activity and other immune cell activity. The study also found that the participating drummers improved their ratios of dehydroepiandrosterone (DHEA) to cortisone, a condition beneficial to immune system function, and found similar increases in NK cell activity stimulated by interleukin-2 and interferon-gamma, two examples of substances call "cytokines" that help drive the immune system. A study done by Dr. Kubota in Japan also found music therapy sessions increased the number of NK cells in seniors in a hospital in Nagoya, Japan.
Several researchers have documented the impact of music on the immune system by measuring secretory IgA or Salivary Immunoglobulin A. In a study emphasizing the association of positive emotional effect and effect of a particular form of music on one parameter of the immune system, S-IgA, the results confirmed that secretory IgA levels can be enhanced by conscious thought (imagery) and by the use of music. (23)
Music has had a variety of roles in connection with death and dying. A new field of Music Thanatology, developed by Therese Schroeder-Sheker, makes a distinction between Music Therapy involving the systematic application of music to engage and support life processes, and Music Thanatology which addresses the complex needs of the dying. (24) The uses of Music Therapy in Palliative Care (25) is well documented. Having served as Therapeutic Music Coordinator for Hospice Hawaii for several years, I have seen the important POWER music has to reduce pain, provide distraction, facilitate emotional catharsis, and provide an alternative communication experience for those in the process of transition.
Part 1: The POWER of Music as Therapy
Part 2: Physiological Effects of Music
Part 4: Wellness Benefits of Music
Part 5: Emotional Expression through Music, and References
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