Oncology Acupuncture for Chronic Pain in Cancer Survivors: A Reflection on the American Society of Clinical Oncology Chronic Pain Guideline

Chronic pain syndromes associated with cancer treatment are common but difficult to manage. The American Society of Clinical Oncology recently published a practice guideline to address the unmet needs of cancer survivors, Management of Chronic Pain in Survivors of Adult Cancers, which stresses the importance of implementing integrative therapies, including acupuncture. This article focuses on randomized clinical trials of acupuncture for chronic pain in cancer survivors, including its use in chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy, aromatase inhibitor associated arthralgia, and post neck dissection pain, and provides future directions of oncology acupuncture research in cancer survivorship. The features of oncology acupuncture are also discussed.