Mind over breath: simple mental games may extend breath holds in cancer treatment
NCT ID NCT06100068
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tested whether mental exercises or a slowed clock can help people hold their breath longer during breast cancer radiation therapy. 36 healthy volunteers were asked to hold their breath while doing a simple mental task on a tablet. The goal was to see if these tricks could make breath holds easier and more comfortable, potentially improving treatment accuracy.
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Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
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Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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36 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Nov 2023
- Finished
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Apr 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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18 years and older
- Sex
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Female participants only
- Healthy volunteers
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Accepted
You do not need to have the condition being studied to take part.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Volunteer * Karnofsky index of at least 90 * Able to perform a single DIBH of at least twenty seconds without assistance * Age ≥ 18 years * Informed consent obtained, signed and dated before specific protocol procedures * Female Exclusion Criteria: * Pregnant women * Volunteers above WHO Obesity class II (BMI\>35kg/m²) * Subjects on oxygen treatment during day or night * COPD or Asthma patients * Volunteers with pulmonary hypertension * Gastric tube present * Smoking * Previous and substantial breath-holding experience in the past year (e.g., diver, etc.) * Mental condition rendering the volunteer unable to understand the nature, scope and possible consequences of the study
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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University Hospital - Radiotherapy Department
Ghent, 9000, Belgium
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Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
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