Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine in Cancer Treatment

Acupuncture has been practiced for thousands of years in the Eastern hemisphere, but is now commonly used to manage cancer-related symptoms, including pain, weight loss, anxiety, depression, insomnia, poor appetite, fatigue and gastrointestinal distress.

In 1997, the National Cancer Institute evaluated the safety and effectiveness of acupuncture as a complimentary cancer treatment, concluding that “there is clear evidence that needle acupuncture treatment is effective for postoperative and chemotherapy nausea and vomiting.” The panel also stated in their report, “there are a number of other pain-related conditions for which acupuncture may be effective as an adjunct therapy, an acceptable alternative or as part of a comprehensive treatment program.” According to the NCI, acupuncture has also been found to boost blood cell count and enhance lymphocyte and natural killer cell activity in some cancer patients and is well tolerated by most patients.

This supports the theory that the greatest benefit of Chinese Medicine as a compliment to chemotherapy and radiation is in its ability to improve immune system function to  support the body’s ability to defend itself from the spread of cancer while alleviating the side effects of cancer treatments.
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I have meant for the past three years to write about how to look at different life-threatening disease, aging, and health from Chinese Medicine perspective. As I continue my study and understanding of the profound theories underlying Chinese Medicine passed down from my ancestors, my yearning to share my thoughts and help more people beyond my daily interaction with my patients grow ever stronger. I saw this article by Robert Bazell, chief science and medical correspondent of NBC News “Rethinking how we confront cancer: Bad science and risk reduction”. I want to expand on this topic for the coming two weeks. I think it will be a good start to my long-delayed project on writing blogs to further the understanding of acupuncture and Chinese Medicine by the public.
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