After a three-year clinical trial of 360 cancer survivors (the largest study of its kind to date), researchers at Memorial Sloan Kettering found that two types of acupuncture treatments were effective for survival. found that it significantly reduced chronic pain in patients. Mao Jun, Director of MSK Integrated Medical Services, explains how the results were published. JAMA Oncology The policy, to be announced on March 18, 2021, could improve cancer treatment and potentially lead to increased insurance coverage for this treatment.
How can acupuncture help cancer patients?
For people with a history of cancer, acupuncture is a drug-free option that can help control and reverse the side effects of chemotherapy, radiation, and surgery. Studies have shown that acupuncture is effective for pain, fatigue, insomnia, neuropathy, and nausea.
Your study looked at electroacupuncture and auricular acupuncture. What is the difference?
Electroacupuncture uses very small, thin needles, about the width of a hair, and very low frequency electrical current to stimulate pressure points on the body. It is different from other types of acupuncture, which do not use electric current. Electroacupuncture is highly customizable for each patient, and the needles are removed after each session. Ear (ear) acupuncture uses small studs that look like tiny earrings to stimulate up to 10 points on a patient’s ear. The pressure points are the same for each person, and the needles remain in the person’s ear for 3 to 4 days.
While electroacupuncture can take months or years to master, auricular acupuncture can be mastered in a day. It is much easier to implement, making it more accessible to patients. For example, a community or rural hospital could begin offering auricular acupuncture before building a large-scale acupuncture program.
acupuncture
Acupuncture is effective in treating chronic pain and some symptoms associated with cancer treatment.
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What was your study goal?
We know that electroacupuncture can help relieve chronic pain. We wanted to test whether ear acupuncture would be just as good. He randomly divided the participants into three groups. Those who received electroacupuncture, those who received auricular acupuncture, and those who received conventional treatment, which may include pain medications, including opioids and over-the-counter medications. Acupuncture treatments were performed on him weekly for 10 weeks. We followed each group for 12 weeks to see if the treatment was effective. They were retested 12 weeks later to see if the effects of the treatment were continuing.
what did you find?
We found that both electroacupuncture and auricular acupuncture significantly reduced chronic pain in people compared to usual care with or without medication. However, auricular acupuncture is not as effective as electroacupuncture. On a scale of 0 to 10, electroacupuncture reduced the severity of pain by 1.9 points, and auricular acupuncture reduced it by 1.6 points, compared to people receiving regular treatment. A 1 point reduction in pain is clinically meaningful, so this is a fairly large reduction. The pain relief from acupuncture lasts for several months, but it’s not like painkillers, which need to be taken frequently.
People can also tolerate electroacupuncture better. He found that less than 1 percent of participants receiving electroacupuncture stopped treatment due to side effects from the treatment, most commonly bruising. She found that 11 percent of people receiving ear acupuncture stopped treatment primarily because of ear pain.
The pain relief from acupuncture lasts for several months, but it’s not like painkillers, which need to be taken frequently.
What is unique about this study?
This is the largest trial of acupuncture in cancer survivors. We recruited patients from Manhattan and regional locations, which included a large proportion of minority patients. We also included people with different types of cancer. Much of the previous acupuncture research focused on women with breast cancer. This included people with prostate cancer, lymphoma, and many other types of diseases.
What is the impact?
We hope these results will lead to expanded insurance coverage for cancer survivors who receive acupuncture. In 2020, Medicare began covering acupuncture for lower back pain. However, coverage of acupuncture for pain in cancer survivors is inconsistent. Additionally, some cancer survivors develop heart, kidney, and liver problems as a result of treatment. This means that you should not take too many painkillers. We hope these data will prompt medical regulators to expand coverage. The urgency is very high. People of lower socio-economic status may not have access to acupuncture in the same way if acupuncture remains unknown.
