The journal of alternative and complementary medicine : research on paradigm, practice, and policy
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J Altern Complement Med · Sep 2020
Multicenter Study Clinical TrialA Quality Brief of an Oncological Multisite Massage and Acupuncture Therapy Program to Improve Cancer-Related Outcomes.
Objectives: Cancer treatment can present its own physical and mental challenges resulting in symptoms such as fatigue, stress, pain, nausea, and vomiting. Aurora Health Care is a large health system with 19 cancer centers. Integrative therapies such as acupuncture and massage have demonstrated success in reducing cancer-related symptoms and side effects to conventional cancer treatment and improving patient outcomes. ⋯ MT was greater at reducing stress and pain, 42.5% and 34.4%, respectively. Conclusions: Across 15 cancer clinics, both AT and MT treatments consistently and significantly reduced cancer-related side effects. These findings highlight the value of conducting a larger randomized-controlled trial to further assess the impact of Oncological Multisite Massage and Acupuncture Therapy on cancer-related symptoms across multiple oncologic clinics.