ROMA – acupuncture, one of the most famous and widespread techniques of traditional Chinese medicine, can be of help to cancer patients. In particular it is proving to be a good remedy for insomniaone of the most frequent consequences of cancer and its treatments.
It is estimated that it affects over 40% of patients and significantly worsens their quality of life. This is what emerged during a round table, made possible and organized by the Foundation for Personalized Medicine (FMP).
The results of a study conducted at the Oncology of the IDI Hospital in Rome were presented at the event women with breast cancer treated with hormone therapy.
“We had the patients perform a weekly acupuncture session – emphasizes the professor Paolo Marchetti, IDI Scientific Director of Rome, Full Professor of Oncology at the La Sapienza University of Rome and President of the Foundation for Personalized Medicine -. After only two months the changes in sleep quality and quantity were significantly positive. Over 43% of the participants achieved complete remission of the disorder and was therefore able to defeat insomnia. We have therefore scientifically demonstrated the excellent beneficial properties of a treatment that does not have any side effects”.
“Traditional Chinese medicine is taking on a unique role in the treatment of some ailments – he adds Fabrizio Jacobeli, Professor at the School of Energetic and Traditional Acupuncture in Rome -. In particular, acupuncture acts on some physiological and psychological mechanisms. It is a treatment capable of ‘exciting’ the receptors and nerve fibers of the stimulated tissue. These in turn activate, through muscle contractions, effects on certain organ functions. In oncology it can be useful as it intervenes directly on the benefits induced by Western therapies and also acts against the side effects. With traditional medicine it is possible to support, and sometimes even amplify, the actions induced on the immune response produced by biological drugs. Acupuncture produces a detoxifying action which moderates the contraindications of antineoplastic therapies such as liver or heart damage”.
“There is the possibility and also the need to integrate the two different ‘care modalities’ for complex patients such as oncological ones – concludes Professor Marchetti -. Every day in Italy alone more than 1,000 people are affected by a form of cancer and must therefore begin an often difficult treatment process. Ensuring a good quality of life after diagnosis, and especially during treatment, is essential. This too can contribute to obtaining a positive response from the organism against the neoplasm. Recurring insomnia is a disorder that cannot be underestimated as it makes days really difficult even for a healthy person. It becomes even more disabling for someone dealing with an already difficult disease like cancer. Therefore, all those remedies that can help an oncological patient to have peaceful and above all restful nights are welcome. The study we conducted in Rome, on the positive effects of acupuncture for women with breast canceris only a first step. More in-depth investigations are now needed to verify the further possible implications of traditional Chinese medicine. In fact, tens of thousands of men and women in our country could benefit from new supportive treatments”.
