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New Research Reveals ‘Star Wars’ Soundtrack Helps Doctors Detect Bowel Cancer…

The mere mention of Star Wars generally conjures remnants of John Williams’ infamous score. Even if you’re not among the film’s dedicated disciples, the iconic music is renowned worldwide. Indeed, seldom do film soundtracks leave such an ineffaceable mark on the world. Now, is that same soundtrack assisting doctors in detecting cancer?

New research, written in a somewhat whimsical style and littered with references to the intergalactic saga, has found that the Star Wars score could influence doctors performance. The study, published in the Medical Journal of Australia, discovered that doctors were more efficient at discovering polyps and adenoma that can cause bowel and colon cancer while listening to the music.

Although written in rather tongue-and-cheek manner, research such as this does highlight the importance of regular health checks and can aid in increasing the awareness of bowel cancer. Particularly due to the fact that polyps in the lining of the bowel can eventually lead to cancer if they are left to grow unchecked and bowel cancer kills approximately 80 Australians every single week.

While music has been used in medical therapy and healing since Ancient Greek times, little has been researched into the effects of movie scores on doctors performing procedures. In light of the latest instalment of the beloved sci-fi franchise having its world premiere last night, and being avid fans of the series, the Melbourne-based researchers deemed it timely to evaluate the influence of the music from Star Wars.

In particular, the score from Star Wars: Episode III Revenge of the Sith was utilised in the research. The study revealed that doctor’s listening to the Star Wars soundtrack had a higher rate of detecting disturbances in the bowel. Specifically, the detection of polyps and adenoma was respectively 25 per cent and 49 per cent higher in doctors listening to the interstellar melodies. The study was based on the results of 103 colonoscopies performed on human subjects, excluding ewoks and wookies, between June and August 2015. The study suggests that listening to the music during the procedure reduced the stress on the endoscopist.

Overall, the research suggests further studies are undertaken in investigating the link between performance and movie scores. However, will other music scores be able to harness the power of ‘the force’? In the meantime, the researchers suggest a prevalent use of Star Wars music in endoscopy rooms to advance quality outcomes. Thus, as highlighted above, research can be used to develop innovative solutions that can highlight awareness of common problems. Moreover, the government offers incentives for those undertaking eligible research activities under the Research and Development (R&D) Tax Incentive.  However, you don’t have to be researching the effects of Lord of the Rings soundtrack on doctor’s performance, or other ‘white lab’ research to be eligible. In fact, the incentive is available to a broad range of industries and for a variety of research activities.  Contact one of our R&D Tax Specialists today to find out if you qualify for the tax benefits.