中国结合医学杂志（英文版）Chinese Journal of Integrative Medicine

Author Name	Affiliation	E-mail
LIAN Wei-Ling, PAN Min-qi,, ZHANG Zhang-jin
ZHOU Dai-han	First School of Clinical Medicine, Guangzhou University of Chinese Medicine, Guangzhou (510006), China	13902206571@139.com

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Abstract:

Objective: To critically evaluate the currently available randomized clinical trials regarding the effectiveness of acupuncture in palliative care for cancer patients, hence, to provide suf?cient evidences for the widespread use of acupuncture in cancer treatment. Methods: Two independent reviewers extracted data from all of the randomized clinical trials (RCTs) that assessed the ef?cacy of acupuncture in palliative care for cancer patients. Seven databases were searched from their respective inception to December 2010. All eligible trials identi?ed were evaluated by two independent reviewers using the Jadad scale, and data from the articles were validated and extracted. Results: In total, 33 RCTs met the inclusion criteria. The effects of acupuncture on different cancer-related aspects were shown, including chemotherapy or radiotherapy-induced side effects (13/33, 39.4%), cancer pain (6/33, 18.2%), post-operative urinary retention (4/33, 12.1%), quality of life (2/33, 6.1%), vasomotor syndrome (2/33, 6.1%), post-operative gastrointestinal dysfunction (2/33, 6.1%), prevention of prolonged postoperative ileus (2/33, 6.1%), joint symptoms (1/33, 3.0%), and immunomodulation (1/33, 3.0%). Conclusions: The result of our systematic review suggested that the effectiveness of acupuncture in palliative care for cancer patients is promising, especially in reducing chemotherapy or radiotherapy-induced side effects and cancer pain. Acupuncture may be an appropriate adjunctive treatment for palliative care.