Music Therapy for Oral Mucositis Pain in Pediatric Patients

June 11, 2026 updated by: University of California, San Francisco

Effect of Music Therapy on Oral Mucositis Pain in Pediatric Patients

This mixed-methods pilot study will examine the effect of music therapy on oral mucositis pain in pediatric oncology patients. Oral mucositis, characterized by painful ulcerative lesions in the mouth, is a common side effect of high-dose chemotherapy and hematopoietic stem cell or bone marrow transplantation. Despite its high prevalence and impact on quality of life, effective pain management strategies for pediatric oral mucositis remain limited and often rely heavily on medications that may cause significant side effects or provide insufficient relief. Music therapy may offer a promising non-pharmacologic adjunct for reducing pain, yet no studies to date have specifically evaluated its use for oral mucositis pain in pediatric patients.

Study Overview

Status

Not yet recruiting

Conditions

Intervention / Treatment

Detailed Description

Phase 1:

Aim 1a: Explore the experiences of oral mucositis pain in pediatric patients.

Aim 1b: Explore how pediatric patients perceive the involvement of music therapy during oral mucositis pain.

Phase 1 of the study involves semi-structured interviews with parent-child dyads about the child's experiences with oral mucositis and their perceptions of music therapy while experiencing oral mucositis pain. Information obtained in Phase 1 will direct the development and design of the Interventional Phase (Phase 2) not yet enrolling.

Study Type

Interventional

Enrollment (Estimated)

50

Phase

  • Not Applicable

Contacts and Locations

This section provides the contact details for those conducting the study, and information on where this study is being conducted.

Study Contact

Study Locations

Participation Criteria

Researchers look for people who fit a certain description, called eligibility criteria. Some examples of these criteria are a person's general health condition or prior treatments.

Eligibility Criteria

Ages Eligible for Study

  • Child
  • Adult

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

Yes

Description

Inclusion Criteria:

Phase 1

  • Child ages 6-18 years old
  • Child has received music therapy and experienced oral mucositis
  • Parent/guardian 18 years and older
  • Able to communicate in English

Exclusion Criteria:

Phase 1

  • Diagnosis of a developmental disorder that would prevent engagement in the active music-making or passive music-listening intervention or completion of study measures.
  • Significant pre-existing hearing loss or impairment that would interfere with participation in the interventions.

Study Plan

This section provides details of the study plan, including how the study is designed and what the study is measuring.

How is the study designed?

Design Details

  • Primary Purpose: Supportive Care
  • Allocation: N/A
  • Interventional Model: Sequential Assignment
  • Masking: None (Open Label)

Arms and Interventions

Participant Group / Arm
Intervention / Treatment
Other: Phase 1: Interview
Participants will consist of parent-child dyads and will take part in an interview conducted online (over Zoom) about the child's experiences with oral mucositis and perceptions of music therapy while experiencing oral mucositis pain. The interview is expected to last up to 1 hour.
Other: Semi-Structured Interviews
Participants will be interviewed online via Zoom

What is the study measuring?

Primary Outcome Measures

Outcome Measure
Measure Description
Time Frame
Identify patterns in previous experience with music therapy
Time Frame: 1 day
Semi-structured interviews will be audio/video-recorded and transcribed using Zoom's built-in transcription function. Finalized transcripts will be analyzed using reflexive thematic analysis, a qualitative method for identifying and interpreting patterns within the data.
1 day

Collaborators and Investigators

This is where you will find people and organizations involved with this study.

Sponsor

University of California, San Francisco

Collaborators

Perloff Family Foundation

Investigators

  • Principal Investigator: Wei Li Jonathan Tang, MT-BC, PhD, University of California, San Francisco

Study record dates

These dates track the progress of study record and summary results submissions to ClinicalTrials.gov. Study records and reported results are reviewed by the National Library of Medicine (NLM) to make sure they meet specific quality control standards before being posted on the public website.

Study Major Dates

Study Start (Estimated)

July 1, 2026

Primary Completion (Estimated)

May 31, 2027

Study Completion (Estimated)

May 31, 2027

Study Registration Dates

First Submitted

June 11, 2026

First Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 11, 2026

First Posted (Actual)

June 17, 2026

Study Record Updates

Last Update Posted (Actual)

June 17, 2026

Last Update Submitted That Met QC Criteria

June 11, 2026

Last Verified

June 1, 2026

More Information

Terms related to this study

Keywords

Additional Relevant MeSH Terms

Other Study ID Numbers

  • 260818
  • NCI-2026-04493 (Registry Identifier: NCI Clinical Trials Reporting Program (CTRP))

Plan for Individual participant data (IPD)

Plan to Share Individual Participant Data (IPD)?

YES

IPD Plan Description

De-identified data collected may be shared with study collaborators during the course of the study.

Drug and device information, study documents

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated drug product

No

Studies a U.S. FDA-regulated device product

No

This information was retrieved directly from the website clinicaltrials.gov without any changes. If you have any requests to change, remove or update your study details, please contact register@clinicaltrials.gov. As soon as a change is implemented on clinicaltrials.gov, this will be updated automatically on our website as well.

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