Its millenary and original tradition of a Village as far away as the China it still surrounds it with an aura of mystery. Actually acupuncture is based on the idea that in the human body there is a system of channels – the meridians – through which an energy at the base of life, called “life force” or Qi, flows. Acting on the meridians allows you to deal with various organic ailments by making this vital energy flow where it has found a “block”. This method is now quite widespread also in public and private hospitals, abroad and in Italy.
But how does this practice fit in with the principles of Western biological science and evidence-based medicine? “This is obviously a definition based on ancient visions acupuncture which today fortunately, especially since 1997, thanks to the diagnostic and exploratory tools of modern medicine, has completely changed, defining theacupuncture a real medical science, based on a complex system of interconnections that allow a wide range of reactions at the nervous, hormonal and circulatory level. Today acupuncture is an Evidence Based Medicine (Ebm) ndr) with 26 thousand scientific publications on the same “, clarifies Dr. Franco Cracolicidoctor and director of the School of Acupuncture of Florence, Vice-President of Fisa (Italian Federation of Acupuncture Society), scientific manager of the activities of Integrated Oncology at the Azienda Usl Toscana Sud-Est, teacher of the Master at La Sapienza University, Rome.
Dr. Cracolici, about 20 years ago, the WHO recognized acupuncture as valid for the treatment of painful symptoms. In what other areas is there evidence that this method works?
The WHO found it useful then for at least 64 different pathologies and after these statements there have been many studies and researches especially in the United States where acupuncture has found confirmation. Among other things, in the upcoming classification of diseases and health problems (ICD11) of theOms there will be the introduction of a chapter, the twenty-sixth, dedicated to diagnosis according to the principles of Traditional Chinese Medicine, which is in continuity with Unesco which in 2010, in Nairobi, declared acupuncture a ‘World Heritage Site’ . Today 30 large American public oncology hospitals (Sloan Kettering, Anderson Cancer, Dana Farber) have an acupuncture service in charge of, for example, the side effects of chemo and radiotherapy; headache and migraine find a first choice practice in the use of acupuncture, without neglecting anxiety, depression and stress. If anything, it is difficult to find a field in which acupuncture cannot always have its say considering it in combination and not a mere replacement for classical medicine. We can say that starting from obstetrics and gynecology up to most of the chronic diseases that drag on with pain and aging, acupuncture can have its say, contributing to the improvement of a wide range of problems.
Can we therefore define it as a complementary medicine to traditional medicine?
We have to talk about one integrative medicinewhich puts itself at the service of man to support the state of psychophysical balance and prevention, exerting an important analgesic and anti-inflammatory action, thanks to a varied range of neurotransmitters that acupuncture itself evokes (endorphins, Cgrp, substance P, dopamine, serotonin, cytokines).
Obviously it is not the panacea for all ills. Furthermore, the therapist who performs it must be prepared by a recognized course of study, he must possibly carry Hippocratic medicine in his heart as especially today empathy is a basic value. And again: he must know how to advise or advise against the application of the same where there is a priority need for another form of therapy or a surgical procedure. In my opinion, there are three basic characteristics of a good doctor who practices it: appropriateness, evidence and humanity.
Are there any contraindications to consider before undergoing acupuncture?
Acupuncture is the absolute medicine that has the least amount of side effects encountered.
Acupuncture has recently been the subject of applications in breast cancer treatments. The results seem to open very encouraging scenarios on the possibilities of integrated treatment for this pathology.
Exactly. There are various innovations within the current national and international reality that enhance the therapeutic procedure of acupuncture in the context ofintegrated oncology. For example, Ispro (Institute for the study, prevention and oncology network, Tuscany) informs on its website about the clinics of the regional health service that provide Integrated Medicine treatments in oncology and there are 19 in Tuscany and 11 in the rest. of Italy; the Asco (American Society of Clinical Oncology) in 2021 approved the guidelines of the Sio (Society of Integrated Oncology) for the complementary treatment of breast cancer, during and after classic allopathic therapies, in anxiety, nausea and vomiting from chemo, lymphedema, peripheral neuropathy, etc. But perhaps the most relevant novelty, at national level and beyond, having been the only one formally in Europe, was the approval of the Pdta (Diagnostic Therapeutic Path) of integrated medicine for cancer patients approved by the Tuscany Region and Ispro.
What is it about?
It consists in the formalization of the integrated treatments in oncology, based on evidence and implemented through a multidisciplinary and personalized path that alongside conventional treatments complementary therapies, such as acupuncture, and healthy lifestyles. All this is included in the regional oncology network and has its own coordination body to which the various public complementary medicine clinics are connected. Personally, I work in the South-East Tuscany Local Health Authority which, thanks to three significant initiatives in this sector in the public sphere (Grosseto, Campostaggia) linked to integration in oncology, is one of the most advanced public and hospital realities in Italy “.