Acupuncture and Massage for Pain Reduction in Advanced Cancer

Health care professionals often provide cancer patients with both traditional pain management and non-traditional treatments such as acupuncture and massage. Now, in a study published this week in the JAMA Network, researchers validate the effectiveness of including these non-traditional pain management methods.

More than half of the study participants had a clinically meaningful response to treatment. Not only did acupuncture and massage reduce pain, these treatments were also associated with improved fatigue, insomnia, and quality of life among patients living with advanced cancer.

By showing the long-term comparative effectiveness of two nonpharmacologic therapies in patients living with advanced cancer, the findings contribute to existing guidelines for cancer pain management.

Read more here.