There have
been many advances in the early detection and treatment of cancer. While the
standard medical care for cancer can be effective, the treatment are aggressive
and cause numerous unwanted side effects in addition to a lowered immune system.
Acupuncture has received much attention as an adjunctive therapy in cancer
treatments addressing many of the symptoms and side effects that come up during
and after chemotherapy, radiation, biological therapy and surgery.
How Does Acupuncture Help?
According to
the National Cancer Institute, acupuncture may cause physical responses in
nerve cells, the pituitary gland, and parts of the brain. These responses can
cause the body to release proteins, hormones, and bran chemicals that govern a
number of body functions. It is proposed that, by stimulating physical
responses in these areas, acupuncture positively affects blood pressure and
body temperature, boosts immune system activity, and causes the body’s natural
painkillers, such as endorphins, to be released.
Acupuncture
takes a holistic approach to health care and is particularly useful in providing
pain relief, reducing the impact of side effects, accelerating recovery and improving
overall quality of life.
Areas where acupuncture has provided
the most help include:
· Nausea
and Vomiting
·
Dry
Mouth, Night Sweats and Hot Flashes
·
Stress,
Anxiety and Fatigue
·
Pain
Management
·
Increasing
White Blood Cell Count
Relieving Nausea and Vomiting
Boosting the Immune System
Human
studies on the effect of acupuncture on the immune system of cancer patients
showed that it improved immune system response, including increasing the number
of white blood cells.
Improving Pain Management
In clinical
studies, acupuncture reduced the pain levels for some cancer patients. In one
study, most of the patients treated with acupuncture were able to stop taking
drugs for pain relief or to reduce their doses.
To learn
more about how acupuncture can safely and effectively be incorporated into an
oncology treatment plan call for a consultation today.
Endorsement of Acupuncture for Cancer
Treatment
Acupuncture
continues to receive enthusiastic testimonials from patients and health care
professionals alike. Prominent names in U.S. society and the medical community
have attested to the efficacy of acupuncture as a supportive therapy for
oncology treatment.
· -
Dr.Oz
has said that acupuncture is helpful for reducing the side effects of cancer
patients undergoing chemotherapy and/or radiation including pain, nausea,
fatigue, hot flashes and dry mouth.
·
- Former
First Lady of Chicago, Maggie Daley, gave generously to help open the Maggie
Daley Center for Women’s Cancer Care at Northwestern Memorial Hospital. The
center includes acupuncture as an option for the patients.
· - When
singer Sheryl Crow was diagnosed with breast cancer, she underwent a lumpectomy
followed by radiation. During these treatments she also received acupuncture
and drank herbal teas.
Many people
are finding out that, although the treatments necessary to defeat cancer can be
traumatizing and debilitating, they can get some relief through acupuncture.
Clinical Trials Indicate Acupuncture
Provides Relief
The American
Cancer Society has reported that half of all men and a third of all women in
the United States will develop cancer during their lifetimes. Although there
are many forms of cancer, all forms of the disease begin with abnormal cells
that grow out of control.
Unlike other
illnesses that are eradicated by the body’s natural defense system, cancer
needs to be treated with powerful medical interventions. Unfortunately, most of
the current cancer treatments available have some debilitating side effects.
This is where acupuncture can provide real help, by decreasing many of the side
effects associated with conventional cancer treatments.
Clinical
trials have examined the effects of acupuncture on cancer and the symptoms
caused by cancer treatment, including weight loss, cough, chest pain, fever, anxiety,
depression, night sweats, hot flashes, dry mouth, speech problems and fluid
retention in the arms or legs. Studies have shown that, for many patients,
treatment with acupuncture either relieves symptoms or keeps them from getting
worse.
Relieves Pain and Stiffness during
Hormone Therapy
In 2010, The
Journal of Clinical Oncology published the results of a small study that
concluded that acupuncture helped relieve pain and stiffness in breast cancer
patients who were simultaneously being treated with hormone therapies.
Minimizes Dry Mouth
In 2009, the
medical journal Head and Neck reported the results of a pilot study done at the
University of Texas M.D. Anderson Cancer Center. The subjects were people
suffering from head and neck cancer. The authors concluded, “This pilot study
demonstrates that acupuncture can improve the subjective symptoms of dry mouths
in patients with radiation-induced xerostomia as early as two weeks after
starting treatment, and the benefits can remain at least one month after
treatment ends,” Dr. Mark Chambers told Reuters Health.
Reduces Pain
and Shoulders Dysfunction
In 2008, Dr.
David Pfister, chief of the head and neck medical oncology service at the
Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center in New York City, presented at the
American Society of Clinical Oncology annual meeting in Chicago. He reported
that patients found significant reductions in both dry mouth and pain and
shoulder dysfunction after neck dissection with the help of acupuncture. “Although
further studies are needed, this does support the potential role of
acupuncture,” said Pfister.
Reduces Hot Flashes
In 2011 A
Yale University/University of Pittsburgh study of women with hot flashes
brought on by conventional breast cancer treatment found that women who
received acupuncture had a 30 percent reduction in hot flashes.
Call or visit Acuheart today
to learn how acupuncture can augment an oncology treatment plan!
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