Music as medicine or the sound of recovery

Music may help patients recover faster and more safely after surgery (World Journal of Gastrointestinal Surgery). Pairing calming music with a structured anesthesia recovery protocol can significantly improve how colorectal cancer patients wake from general anesthesia, from their vital signs to their stress levels to their overall physical and cognitive recovery. For patients undergoing colorectal cancer surgery, these findings offer a hopeful shift. For hospitals, they point toward an inexpensive, non-invasive tool that may meaningfully improve outcomes.

Colorectal cancer is becoming increasingly common worldwide, especially among younger adults, and surgery remains the backbone of treatment. Laparoscopic radical resection has improved recovery times, but the immediate period after anesthesia is still a fragile window. As patients begin to regain consciousness, the body’s systems surge: heart rate rises, blood pressure spikes, and some patients experience emergence agitation, a state of confusion or restlessness that can complicate healing.

Standard perioperative nursing care is designed to ease this transition, yet it often falls short because it does not fully address the psychological and physiological stress of waking from anesthesia. Researchers have long suspected that music, with its ability to calm and regulate the nervous system, might help bridge that gap.

Inside the Study

To test this idea, researchers examined 120 colorectal cancer patients who underwent laparoscopic radical resection between early 2022 and mid-2024. All patients received the same surgical team, the same anesthesia regimen, and the same standard nursing care. But half received an additional layer of support: professionally selected calming music played twice a day, combined with an enhanced anesthesia recovery protocol that included better temperature regulation, continuous monitoring, psychological reassurance, and careful airway management. The goal was see whether this combination could help patients wake more smoothly, more quickly, and with fewer complications.

The differences were immediately visible. Patients who received music and enhanced recovery care regained consciousness faster, had earlier extubation, and spent less time in the post-anesthesia care unit. Their vital signs which normally spike as anesthesia wears off showed smaller increases in heart rate and blood pressure, suggesting a steadier physiological transition.

Biochemical markers told the same story. Stress hormones such as cortisol, aldosterone, adrenaline, and norepinephrine rose after surgery, but rose far less among patients exposed to music. Their bodies appeared less overwhelmed by the stress of waking up.

This calmer internal environment was reflected in their behavior and cognitive performance as well. They scored higher on measures of mental clarity, mood, and physical functioning, and were better able to resume basic daily activities in the early recovery phase.

Fewer Post-Surgery Complications

Perhaps the most striking finding was the difference in complications. Only a small fraction of the music-therapy group experienced postoperative issues such as shivering, nausea, vomiting, hypothermia, or agitation. In contrast, complications were four times more common among those who received standard care alone.

This drop in complications highlights how the psychological and physiological effects of music reduced anxiety, better emotional regulation, and dampened sympathetic nervous system activity  can interact with structured nursing care to create a much more stable recovery phase.

While the study is retrospective and limited to a single surgical center, its conclusions mirror what previous research has suggested across other medical fields: music has a measurable, meaningful impact on the brain and body. In surgical settings, where stress responses are high and complications can escalate quickly, the benefits may be even more pronounced.

Larger studies will be needed to test long-term effects and generalize these findings across different surgeries and populations. But the message is promising. With almost no cost and no added risk, music could become a powerful addition to perioperative care, helping patients wake more peacefully, recover more quickly, and face their treatment with greater emotional ease. For now, the study offers a reminder that healing is not only about advanced technology or complex medication. Sometimes, recovery begins with something as human and universal as music.