Acupuncture in cancer care: recommendations for safe practice (peer-reviewed expert opinion).

Background: Up-to-date recommendations for the safe practice of acupuncture in integrative oncology are overdue with new cancer treatments and an increase in survivors with late effects of disease; 17 years have elapsed since Filshie and Hester's 2006 guidelines. During 2022/2023 an expert panel assembled to produce updated recommendations aiming to facilitate safe and appropriate care by acupuncturists working with people with cancer.

Methods: A core development team comprising three integrative oncology professionals comprehensively updated pre-existing unpublished recommendations.

Acupuncture in the real world: evaluating a 15-year NADA auricular acupuncture service for breast cancer survivors experiencing hot flushes and night sweats as a consequence of adjuvant hormonal therapies.

Purpose: While clinical trials provide valuable data about efficacy of interventions, findings often do not translate into clinical settings. We report real world clinical outcomes of a 15-year service offering breast cancer survivors auricular acupuncture to manage hot flushes and night sweats (HFNS) associated with adjuvant hormonal treatments. This service evaluation aims to (1) assess whether usual practice alleviates symptoms in a clinically meaningful way and (2) compare these results with scientific evidence.

Connecting (T)issues: How Research in Fascia Biology Can Impact Integrative Oncology.

Complementary and integrative treatments, such as massage, acupuncture, and yoga, are used by increasing numbers of cancer patients to manage symptoms and improve their quality of life. In addition, such treatments may have other important and currently overlooked benefits by reducing tissue stiffness and improving mobility. Recent advances in cancer biology are underscoring the importance of connective tissue in the local tumor environment.

"The Monkey on Your Shoulder": A Qualitative Study of Lymphoedema Patients' Attitudes to and Experiences of Acupuncture and Moxibustion.

Background. Lymphoedema, a distressing consequence of cancer treatment, has significant negative impact on health-related quality of life. Multidisciplinary approaches are needed to improve physical and psychosocial wellbeing.

Assessing the feasibility of using acupuncture and moxibustion to improve quality of life for cancer survivors with upper body lymphoedema.

Purpose: Within a three-step mixed-methods study to investigate using acupuncture and moxibustion (acu/moxa) in the management of cancer treatment-related upper body lymphoedema, Step 2 obtained preliminary data about: 1) whether acu/moxa can improve quality of life, 2) the most troublesome symptoms, and 3) adverse effects.

Methods And Sample: An exploratory single-arm observational clinical study included breast (BC) and head and neck cancer (HNC) survivors with mild-to-moderate uncomplicated lymphoedema for ≥3 months, ≥3 months post active-cancer treatment, no active cancer disease, undergoing routine lymphoedema maintenance. Participants received seven individualised treatments (S1), and six optional additional treatments (S2).

Using traditional acupuncture for breast cancer-related hot flashes and night sweats.

Objectives: Women taking tamoxifen experience hot flashes and night sweats (HF&NS); acupuncture may offer a nonpharmaceutical method of management. This study explored whether traditional acupuncture (TA) could reduce HF&NS frequency, improve physical and emotional well-being, and improve perceptions of HF&NS. DESIGN/SETTINGS/LOCATION: This was a single-arm observational study using before and after measurements, located in a National Health Service cancer treatment center in southern England.

Ear acupuncture for hot flushes--the perceptions of women with breast cancer.

Hot flushes and night sweats are a major problem for women having adjuvant hormonal treatment for breast cancer. We explored using a standardised ear acupuncture protocol delivered in small group clinics as an option to manage these side effects. Qualitative research aimed to elicit the opinions of women who received this treatment.