An Evidence-Based Review of Acupuncture as an Adjunctive Therapy in Comprehensive Cancer Care

The use of acupuncture as an adjunctive therapy for cancer has been increasing over several decades. While there has only been one Cochrane review completed in this area, with another at the protocol stage, several high-quality RCTs have been published in the last decade. These studies have focused on the effect of acupuncture on managing many of the disabling symptoms associated with radiation therapy, chemotherapy or surgical intervention. These include conditions such as nausea, pain control, xerostomia and fatigue. This chapter will report on the current evidence for using acupuncture for these conditions as well as some of the problems associated with designing and implementing a rigorous acupuncture clinical trial.