Acupuncture & Self-Care help Hot Flushes in Women with Breast Cancer

Acupuncture research from Italy.
Researchers in Italy have concluded that acupuncture with enhanced self-care is an effective intervention for managing hot flushes and improving the quality of life in menopausal women with breast cancer. A pragmatic, randomised, controlled trial involving 190 women, compared enhanced self-care plus acupuncture (85 women), with enhanced self-care alone (105 women). Both groups received a booklet on managing menopause, to be followed for at least 12 weeks. The acupuncture group in addition received 10 acupuncture sessions.

Compared with self-care alone, the acupuncture group by the end of treatment had a significantly lower hot flush score. This remained the case at three- and six-month follow-ups. Acupuncture was also associated with fewer other menopausal symptoms and higher quality of life.

(Acupuncture As an Integrative Approach for the Treatment of Hot Flashes in Women With Breast Cancer: A Prospective Multicenter Randomized Controlled Trial. Journal of Clinical Oncology, 28 March 2016 epub ahead of print.)

Author: Robin Costello

I offer traditional Chinese acupuncture in Exeter, from a tranquil clinic a mile from the city centre, and next to the University of Exeter. I graduated originally from the London School of Acupuncture and Traditional Chinese Medicine’s 3 year full time Acupuncture Diploma (DipAc) course. I am on the practitioners register of the British Acupuncture Council (MBAcC), a regulatory and professional body with an entry standard of a full three year undergraduate degree level training. I have worked in a hospital in south west China, deepening my knowledge and using acupuncture and Chinese massage (tuina) as the treatment of choice in its country of origin. I have taught Chinese medicine in colleges, the NHS and at university level. I also practise Qi Gong, and Chinese dietary therapy, that is the medicinal use of ordinary foods, chosen to help achieve particular therapeutic effects in different individuals.