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Showing Original Post only (View all)Top cancer hospitals across the country treat their patients' PAIN with "woo." [View all]
That is, if you consider acupuncture to be "woo." These hospitals don't -- even if they don't think "chi" is the mechanism of action.They, of course, treat the cancer itself with standard cancer therapy, but treat many of the symptoms or side effects of treatment using an integrated model which can include acupuncture and other complementary forms of therapy.
Here are just a few examples.
MAYO CLINIC
http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/acupuncture/care-at-mayo-clinic/why-choose-mayo-clinic/prc-20020778
Expertise. At Mayo Clinic, acupuncture is done only by doctors trained in acupuncture and by licensed acupuncturists trained in traditional Chinese medicine.
Experience. Mayo Clinic specialists in complementary and integrative medicine perform thousands of acupuncture treatments each year.
Integrated care. At Mayo Clinic, acupuncture specialists integrate their care with the care provided by your other doctors to blend the best of conventional and complementary treatments.
Research leader. Mayo Clinic researchers rigorously test complementary treatments such as acupuncture to determine their effectiveness.
http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/acupuncture/basics/definition/prc-20020778
Traditional Chinese medicine explains acupuncture as a technique for balancing the flow of energy or life force known as qi or chi (CHEE) believed to flow through pathways (meridians) in your body. By inserting needles into specific points along these meridians, acupuncture practitioners believe that your energy flow will re-balance.
In contrast, many Western practitioners view the acupuncture points as places to stimulate nerves, muscles and connective tissue. This stimulation appears to boost the activity of your body's natural painkillers and increase blood flow.
http://www.mayoclinic.org/tests-procedures/acupuncture/basics/why-its-done/prc-20020778
You may try acupuncture for symptomatic relief of a variety of diseases and conditions, including:
Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting
Fibromyalgia
Headaches
Labor pain
Low back pain
Menstrual cramps
Migraines
Osteoarthritis
Dental pain
Tennis elbow
FROM MEMORIAL SLOAN-KETTERING CANCER CENTER
http://www.mskcc.org/cancer-care/integrative-medicine/expertise
Acupuncture
To address chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting, nerve and joint pain, hot flashes, dry mouth, headache, fatigue, procedural anxiety, depression, insomnia, stress, appetite loss, diarrhea, constipation, weight gain and loss, and lifestyle changes such as smoking cessation. Recent research also shows that acupuncture may be effective in managing swallowing difficulties and swelling such as lymphedema.
http://www.mskcc.org/blog/study-shows-acupuncture-may-relieve-chronic-lymphedema-after-breast-treatment
A study from Memorial Sloan Kettering investigators has shown that acupuncture may help relieve lymphedema of the arm, a swelling that sometimes follows breast cancer treatment.
The research, led by Barrie R. Cassileth, Chief of Memorial Sloan Ketterings Integrative Medicine Service, and Clifford A. Hudis, Chief of the Breast Cancer Medicine Service, was published April 10 in the journal Cancer.
We have shown that acupuncture as a treatment for lymphedema is safe and well tolerated, says Dr. Cassileth. Furthermore, this study demonstrated reductions in lymphedema for the patients treated, providing strong impetus for the randomized controlled trial that is now under way to prove that the effect is real.
SNIP
Dr. Cassileth cautions patients who might seek acupuncture for lymphedema on their own. Because of the potential for complications, she concludes, its important that acupuncture treatment is received only from licensed practitioners who are also specifically trained to work with cancer patients.
FROM THE FRED HUTCHINSON CANCER RESEARCH CENTER:
http://www.fhcrc.org/content/dam/public/Treatment-Suport/survivorship/Healthy-Links/Aromatase%20Inhibitors.pdf
Acupuncture and Cancer
Acupuncture is not used on its own as a treatment for cancer. Instead, it is combined with traditional cancer treatments to decrease symptoms of cancer or the side effects related to the treatment of cancer such as nausea, vomiting and stress. Acupuncture has also been found to relieve fatigue, pain and neuropathy related to cancer and its treatment. In the United States and Europe, acupuncture is generally used to control pain and alleviate symptoms of disease, but not cure the disease.
There have been many proposed scientific reasons related to acupunctures effect on pain. Acupuncture points are thought to stimulate the central nervous system (the brain and spinal cord) to release chemicals into the muscles, spinal cord and brain. When these chemicals are released it is thought that they change the experience of pain or release hormones that control different functions in the body. These changes may affect blood pressure, body temperature, increase immune system activity and cause endorphins (natural painkillers) to be released.
Are There Side Effects From Acupuncture?
There have been few side effects reported. Problems have been associated with using needles that were not sterile, placing a needle in the wrong place or movement of the patient. Other possible side effects may include soreness or pain during treatment, fatigue or lightheadedness and sleepiness. Chemotherapy and radiation weaken the immune system so it is very important to seek treatment from a qualified acupuncture practioner who only uses disposable needles for each patient. Before beginning any type of therapy individuals should talk to their doctor first.
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Top cancer hospitals across the country treat their patients' PAIN with "woo." [View all]
pnwmom
Apr 2014
OP
You know what else is really common, and generally accepted without mocking? Prayer.
Electric Monk
Apr 2014
#1
If some cancer hospitals are treating patients' pain with prayer, I didn't run into any.
pnwmom
Apr 2014
#2
When my mom had cancer, she had many friends who said they were praying for her recovery.
Electric Monk
Apr 2014
#4
that study was so poorly designed and so poorly executed, NO ONE should reference it.
KittyWampus
Apr 2014
#19
I can't stand it, between that and other childish words thrown around here of late
Dragonfli
Apr 2014
#70
My step-mother was once prescribed decaf coffee enemas for relief from hives
OriginalGeek
Apr 2014
#85
Yes, it is not woo/psuedoscience. That is wonderful for your father!
Tuesday Afternoon
Apr 2014
#124
I think things like acupuncture have a hypnotic component that truly does help pain.
mucifer
Apr 2014
#8
Acupuncture as such is not 'woo'; there is some evidence that it can relieve pain and other symptoms
LeftishBrit
Apr 2014
#12
It's a business. Cheap perks that give you a leg up over the competition are smart.
LeftyMom
Apr 2014
#13
The National Institutes of Health doesn't fund studies of hospital valet parking. n/t
pnwmom
Apr 2014
#31
As the OP points out, many actual physicians disagree with your great wisdom
Bluenorthwest
Apr 2014
#35
A commenter on another board, with a related thread asks the pertinent question...
SidDithers
Apr 2014
#36
Pnwmom, I have to disagree with you as I have been treated with acupunture AS PART
Ecumenist
Apr 2014
#40
Oh okay, I am so sorry. I read it but not completely. I shouldn't have assumed that
Ecumenist
Apr 2014
#46
OH BULLSHIT. Only talk about what you know. Just because she went to someone who
Ecumenist
Apr 2014
#69
IT WORKS, Curmodgeness. I am a recipeint of this "cray-cray". IT IS NOT CRAZY
Ecumenist
Apr 2014
#47
NIH funded study: Acupuncture for Chronic Pain / Individual Patient Data Meta-analysis
magical thyme
Apr 2014
#55
We use acupuncture with great effects on the horses. Animals can't manufacture a placebo response
riderinthestorm
Apr 2014
#91
From what I remember the only problem with the studies is that you can't double blind
Recursion
Apr 2014
#81
It is very important to differentiate the marketing information provided by health care centers ...
etherealtruth
Apr 2014
#65
What does that have to do with acupuncture, which is what the thread is about? nt
Electric Monk
Apr 2014
#94
In other words, they let patients indulge in generally harmless placebos of their own choice...
Silent3
Apr 2014
#109
Sure, because we give the DEA 60 billion a year to bully doctors into under-treating pain.
Warren DeMontague
Apr 2014
#118
Top cancer hospitals across the country relieve their patients' of money with "woo."
MattBaggins
Apr 2014
#120