On November 12-14, 2025, at the European Society for Medical Oncology Artificial Intelligence & Digital Oncology Congress held in Berlin, Germany, with 1,150 participants, 44 speakers, 358 oral presentations, and 346 poster presentations, Research Assistant Kadir Baysoy, Prof. Dr. Leyla Özdemir, and Assoc. Prof. Dr. Nur İzgü, titled “The Effect of Immersive Virtual Reality and Relaxation Video Interventions on Symptom Severity, Distress, and Quality of Life in Lung Cancer Patients Receiving Chemotherapy: Preliminary Results of a Randomized Controlled Trial,” was awarded the “Merit Award” by the jury.
Our Faculty of Nursing faculty members shared the following information about the importance and purpose of the study in the paper:
"Virtual Reality (VR) is a new method, but its cost limits its accessibility. We believe that Relaxation Video (RV) interventions could offer a low-cost alternative. While the effectiveness of VR has been studied in other cancer types, evidence is limited in lung cancer. There are no studies in the literature comparing VR and RV. The study aims to evaluate the effects of VR and RV on symptoms, distress, and quality of life in lung cancer patients receiving their first chemotherapy. In this study, VR was used to manage the intense symptoms that negatively affect the quality of life of chemotherapy patients, yielding promising results."