ENSEMBLE: a network exploring how music helps relieve pain
Effective Network to advance Scientific Evidence related to Mechanisms of music-Based interventions (ENSEMBLE)
['FUNDING_OTHER'] · UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE · NIH-11190968
This project brings together music therapists and scientists to find out how music-based therapies reduce pain for adults with conditions such as cancer and sickle cell disease.
Quick facts
| Phase | ['FUNDING_OTHER'] |
|---|---|
| Study type | Nih_funding |
| Sex | All |
| Sponsor | UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE (nih funded) |
| Locations | 1 site (IRVINE, UNITED STATES) |
| Trial ID | NIH-11190968 on ClinicalTrials.gov |
What this research studies
This effort builds a collaborative network that links clinical music therapy practice with mechanistic science to study pain. The team will standardize how music-based interventions and patient-reported outcomes are defined and collected, and combine those measures with biological data such as genomic, metabolomic, and neurologic markers. ENSEMBLE will fund and support interdisciplinary pilot projects across partner sites, with an initial focus that includes sickle cell disease and cancer-related pain. As a patient, participation would take place at participating clinics and could involve music therapy sessions, surveys, and providing biological samples for analysis.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal candidates are adults experiencing chronic or recurrent pain—for example from cancer or sickle cell disease—who can attend sessions at participating clinical sites and are willing to complete surveys and provide biological samples.
Not a fit: Children, people without pain, or patients unable to participate in music sessions or provide samples (for example due to severe hearing loss or inability to travel to a site) are unlikely to benefit directly from this network's projects.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: If successful, the network could lead to clearer explanations for how music eases pain and better-targeted music therapies that improve pain control and quality of life.
How similar studies have performed: Previous clinical studies have shown that music therapy can reduce pain in several populations, but using genomic, metabolomic, and neurologic measures to explain how it works is relatively new.
Where this research is happening
IRVINE, UNITED STATES
- UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE — IRVINE, UNITED STATES (ACTIVE)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: DUSEK, JEFFERY A — UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA-IRVINE
- Study coordinator: DUSEK, JEFFERY A
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.
Conditions: Cancers