Acceptance and commitment therapy versus mindfulness-based stress reduction for newly diagnosed head and neck cancer patients: A randomized controlled trial assessing efficacy for positive psychology, depression, anxiety, and quality of life

Background and aim: Head and neck cancer patients are vulnerable to various psychological complications due to the effects of both cancer itself and cancer treatment on patients appearance and physical well-being. Nevertheless, few data have been obtained on effective psychosocial interventions that could protect this group of cancer patients psychological well-being. Therefore, this three-armed, parallel-group, double-blind, randomized control trial aims to evaluate and compare the effects of acceptance and commitment therapy and mindfulness-based stress reduction on positive psychology such as posttraumatic growth, hope, and optimism, quality of life, and psychological complications including depression, anxiety, and experiential avoidance among newly diagnosed head and neck cancer patients.