How to Reduce Nausea and Pain from Cancer Treatment with Acupuncture
Receiving a cancer diagnosis can be a difficult and frightening experience. However, it’s crucial to remain hopeful, as cancer can be cured or put into remission, especially with early detection. There are now more treatments available than ever before to treat cancer, slow its progress, and alleviate its symptoms, allowing for a healthier life. It’s also important to know that there are alternative options available, such as acupuncture, which can complement medical treatments for cancer. This guide explores modern cancer treatment strategies and how acupuncture can enhance these treatments, providing significant benefits to your quality of life before, during, or even after your cancer treatments.
Cancer treatments and the side effects
Cancer is a disease that happens when cells multiply abnormally, causing damage or destruction to healthy tissue. Cancers are usually named based on their origin in the body, and there are over 100 different types of cancer. Some common types of cancer include breast cancer, skin cancer, lung cancer, colon cancer, and prostate cancer.
Treatment plans are based on many factors, including the type and stage (how far it has spread) of the cancer and your overall health. Cancer treatments are proven effective. However, there are serious side effects to take into account. Conventional treatments include:
Surgery: removes the cancer if possible.
Chemotherapy: the use of medications to destroy cancer cells. Chemotherapy generally lasts from 3 to 9 months. Importantly, it can have side effects, including fatigue, nausea, vomiting, hair loss, early menopause, and hot flashes.
Radiation therapy: the use of high doses of radiation to destroy cancer cells. The side effects generally include fatigue, hair loss, and skin darkening at the treatment site.
Biological therapy: results in a boost to the body’s immune system to fight cancer cells. Treatment ramifications include rashes, swelling, flu-like symptoms, fatigue, nausea, and loss of appetite.
How acupuncture can help during treatment
Acupuncture and Chinese herbal medicine have been used for thousands of years to maintain health. For example, practitioners use acupuncture to reduce pain, swelling, and poor circulation. Additionally, electroacupuncture can also calm nerve pain (neuropathy). Chinese herbal medicine focuses on complimenting acupuncture treatments to strengthen the pro-circulatory benefits, thereby enhancing pain reduction, much like a copilot supports a pilot. Chinese herbal formulas include internal teas and external liniments/poultices. It’s always good to remember that acupuncture is more than needles. A treatment typically includes a massage/cupping component, a heat component, acupuncture needles, and an external or internal herbal formula.
Acupuncture should not be viewed as a quick solution but rather as a series of treatments that provide cumulative benefits.
Since acupuncture has few side effects, it can be safely added as a complement to conventional cancer treatments. In fact, it’s helpful to soothe and reduce side effects from treatments in many cancer cases. According to a National Institutes of Health consensus conference and additional research, acupuncture for cancer care is effective in relieving:
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Treatments can also help relieve stress, depression, and anxiety, which can significantly improve your quality of life during this challenging time.
Acupuncture and Chinese Herbal Medicine
When it comes to cancer care, acupuncture practitioners take a holistic approach. This means they consider your symptoms, lifestyle, emotional state, and overall health, not just the cancer itself. Even after your cancer treatments are complete, you may require ongoing support to restore your health. Acupuncture and Chinese herbal formulas are particularly effective in this area of medicine. By working with your practitioner to improve your health and alleviate any side effects, you are not only maximizing the benefits of conventional treatments but also regaining control of your life.
It’s important to remember that if you’re thinking about using an internal herbal medicine formula, you should consult with a qualified practitioner first. Depending on the type and triggers of your cancer, an herbal formula might cause future cancer outbreaks, which can be dangerous. To ensure the safest care possible, it’s best to work with both an oncologist and an herbalist who can review the latest research.
