Acupuncture can reduce the hormonal side effects of endocrine therapy in women with breast cancer.
Today’s topic? Needles for hot flashes.
I am an oncologist and treat many women with breast cancer.
Many benefit from strategies targeting estrogen, a food that most breast cancers use.
Unfortunately, this survival-improving tool is associated with side effects like hot flashes.
At least 80 percent of patients receiving endocrine therapy experience hot flashes and other hormonal side effects.
These side effects often lead to treatment discontinuation, increasing the risk of cancer progression and mortality.
A new study suggests the promise of acupuncture for reducing hot flashes.
While the study looked specifically at women experiencing cancer treatment-related hot flashes, women experiencing menopause may benefit from this broad overview of acupuncture.
A Side Note
Of course, as I wrote this piece, I got distracted.
Did you know that turtles respond to acupuncture?
Enter Dexter and Fletcher Moon.
These two sea turtles became stuck on Cape Cod in Massachusetts (USA). Here’s the headline from the Washington Post newspaper:
During unusually cold weather, several turtles became stranded on Cape Cod.
The animals developed hypothermia, a life-threatening condition characterized by extremely low body temperature, which left them immobile and unable to eat for days.
Scientists rescued the turtles and took them to the New England Aquarium’s animal care center for treatment.
Acupuncture Benefits Turtles
Initially, veterinarians tried laser therapy, antibiotics, and other traditional treatments to help the turtles recover.
However, these treatments proved ineffective.
However, after three acupuncture sessions, the turtles had better limb use and began eating independently.
Okay, I’ll turn back to the use of acupuncture for hot flashes.
Study Details: Needles for Hot Flashes
A multinational study involving women with non-metastatic breast cancer examined the impact of acupuncture on hormonal side effects and quality of life.
Researchers randomly assigned 148 patients to either immediate or delayed acupuncture groups.
The immediate group received twice-weekly acupuncture for ten weeks, followed by ten weeks without.
The delayed group received usual care for ten weeks, then once-weekly acupuncture for ten weeks.
Study Results: Needles for Hot Flashes
The investigators used standardized questionnaires to assess hormonal symptoms and quality of life domains.
After ten weeks, the women who got acupuncture earlier said they felt much better.
Their hot flashes and other symptoms were less bothersome, and they reported a better overall quality of life.
Sixty-four percent of the women in the early hot flash group had relief from hot flashes, compared to only 18 percent of those who had not started acupuncture yet.
Interestingly, the women who started acupuncture later also saw improvements once they began treatment, but not as quickly as the other group.
Acupuncture Well-Tolerated
No one experienced any negative side effects from the acupuncture.
This study suggests that acupuncture could be a safe and helpful way for women with breast cancer to manage their symptoms and improve their quality of life.
As an oncologist, I am delighted for an additional reason: If women are compliant with their recommended “anti-estrogen” therapy, they are more likely to survive their breast cancer.
Association between trajectories of adherence to endocrine therapy and risk of treated breast…
Endocrine therapy is the mainstay treatment for breast cancer (BC) to reduce BC recurrence risk. During the first year…www.nature.com
One more thing: Those without breast cancer may get hot flash relief from acupuncture, too.
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