An interventional study of AI-Assisted Collaborative Songwriting (ARTIST) Intervention and Time and attention matched-music listening (TAME) in Cancer, sponsored by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. Recruiting at 7 sites in United States. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-09-28.
Sponsored by Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
The researchers are doing this study to compare two different music-based treatment approaches and see if one may work better to reduce anxiety. The researchers will also study whether these music-based treatment approaches help people feel socially connected and change how they cope with anxiety, and whether these changes are linked to lower anxiety levels. Both approaches use music-based activities to treat anxiety. One of the approaches uses an artificial intelligence (AI)-powered song creation platform to write songs with a music therapist. The other approach involves music listening exercises and music-based discussions with research staff, during which you will learn about music culture and history.
Criteria:
ARTIST intervention is designed to reduce anxiety by facilitating social connection and cognitive processing of cancer-related experience. The active "ingredient" of our intervention is collaborative songwriting, during which music therapists work with participants to brainstorm themes, draft lyrics, create melodies and harmonies, and produce an original song with personal meaning. Eight weekly 60-minute sessions.
Other: AI-Assisted Collaborative Songwriting (ARTIST) Intervention
TAME control will involve Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI)-trained research staff guiding participants through passive music listening exercises.Research staff will facilitate passive listening experiences of pre-selected songs, with each session focusing on a different genre. These music listening exercises will be purely receptive with no behavioral skill training or active music engagement. Research staff will prepare discussion points for each pre-selected song, focusing on academic topics (e.g., music theory, artist biography, historical context, genre characteristics), designed to minimize personal reflection or cognitive processing of cancer-related experiences. Eight weekly 60-minute sessions and all sessions will be delivered via Zoom.
Other: Time and attention matched-music listening (TAME)
Patients will complete outcome measures of anxiety, social-cognitive outcomes, and co-morbid symptoms at baseline, week 4, week 8, week 16, and week 26.
TAME control will involve Collaborative Institutional Training Initiative (CITI)-trained research staff guiding participants through passive music listening exercises. This control group is designed to match therapist attention and contact time of ARTIST, as well as control for music engagement unrelated to the active ingredient of ARTIST. Patients will complete outcome measures of anxiety, social-cognitive outcomes, and co-morbid symptoms at baseline, week 4, week 8, week 16, and week 26.
anxiety reduction
anxiety reduction at week 26 being the primary endpoint greater reduction in the Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS) anxiety subscale
Time frame: 26 weeks
Plan to share: Yes — Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center supports the international committee of medical journal editors (ICMJE) and the ethical obligation of responsible sharing of data from clinical trials. The protocol summary, a statistical summary, and informed consent form will be made available on clinicaltrials.gov when required as a condition of Federal awards, other agreements supporting the research and/or as otherwise required. Requests for deidentified individual participant data can be made following one year after publication and for up to 36 months later. Deidentified individual participant data reported in the manuscript will be shared under the terms of a Data Use Agreement and may only be used for approved proposals. Requests may be made to: crdatashare@mskcc.org.
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Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center