Zapping a nerve during surgery might ease Post-Op blues
NCT ID NCT07458646
First seen Jun 27, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026
Summary
This study tests whether a device that gently stimulates a nerve in the ear (taVNS) during breast cancer surgery can help prevent or reduce negative emotions like anxiety and depression after the operation. About 232 women will receive either real or sham stimulation for 30 minutes while under anesthesia. Researchers will then track mood, pain, sleep, and recovery over the following days.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- transcutaneous auricular vagus nerve stimulation (taVNS) device
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a drug-free way to ease anxiety and depression after breast cancer surgery, improving recovery and quality of life.
- What could go wrong
- This is an early-stage trial with a single 30-minute session, so effects may be small or not last. The sham control helps, but results may not apply to all patients.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
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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About 232 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Expected to start
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Feb 2026
An estimate. Start dates often move.
- Expected to finish
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Feb 2027
An estimate. End dates often move.
- 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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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
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: * Aged ≥18 years. Scheduled for elective breast cancer surgery. ASA physical status I-III. Willing and able to provide informed consent. Exclusion Criteria: * Preoperative MMSE score \< 24; severe communication barriers. History of diagnosed dementia, Parkinson's disease, schizophrenia, bipolar disorder, major depressive disorder, or long-term use of psychotropic drugs. Skin lesions, infection, or deformity of bilateral ears; history of ear surgery or nerve injury; allergy to electrode materials. Severe arrhythmia; implanted electronic devices (e.g., pacemaker, ICD). Participation in another interventional trial within 3 months. Other conditions deemed unsuitable by investigators.
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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.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
2 sites. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Beijing Tiantan Hospital
Beijing, China
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First Medical Center of Chinese PLA General Hospital, Beijing, China.
Beijing, China
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