Cancer
Cancer and the treatments for cancer are associated with various symptoms. Fatigue is the most common symptom reported by survivors of cancer (Johnston 2007). Forty percent of people with early or intermediate stage cancer, and 90% with advanced cancer, have moderate to severe pain; up to 70% of those with cancer pain do not receive adequate pain relief (Paley 2011). [read more]
How acupuncture can help
Research has shown that acupuncture treatment may specifically benefit symptoms associated with cancer and its treatment by:
Acting on areas of the brain known to reduce sensitivity to pain and stress, as well as promoting relaxation and deactivating the ‘analytical’ brain, which is responsible for anxiety and worry (Hui 2010; Hui 2009);
Regulating neurotransmitters (or their modulators) and hormones such as serotonin, noradrenaline, dopamine, GABA, neuropeptide Y and ACTH; hence altering the brains’s mood chemistry to help to combat negative affective states (Lee 2009; Cheng 2009; Zhou 2008);
Increasing the release of adenosine, which has antinociceptive properties (Goldman 2010);
Improving muscle stiffness and joint mobility by increasing local microcirculation (Komori 2009), which aids dispersal of swelling;
Stimulating production of endogenous opioids that affect the autonomic nervous system (Arranz 2007). Stress activates the sympathetic nervous system, while acupuncture can activate the opposing parasympathetic nervous system, which initiates the relaxation response;
Reversing pathological changes in levels of inflammatory cytokines (Arranz 2007);
Reducing inflammation, by promoting release of vascular and immunomodulatory factors (Kavoussi 2007, Zijlstra 2003);
Increasing levels of T lymphocyte subsets such as CD(3) , CD(4), and CD(8) , as well as Natural Killer cells (Zhao 2010);
