October may be Breast Cancer Awareness Month, but researchers and clinicians are hard at work year round trying to prevent and treat breast cancer, which affects up to one in eight women in their lifetime.
Encouraging new study findings suggest 12 weeks of acupuncture can help mitigate joint pain caused by aromatase inhibitors, which are used to treat hormone-sensitive breast cancer. (According to the study authors, joint pain due to aromatase inhibitor use leads to therapy nonadherence in more than 50 percent of patients taking them.)
The primary outcome variable assessed: Brief Pain Inventory Worst Pain score at 52 weeks (0-10 score, with higher score indicating greater pain). A key secondary outcome: (PROMIS Pain Interference–Short Form, 6-30 scale, with higher score indicating worse symptoms).
Pain scores were 1.08 points lower in the TA vs. SA group and .099 points lower in the TA vs. WC group after 52 weeks, while 52-week pain-interference scores were statistically significantly lower in the TA vs. SA group, suggesting long-term benefits of acupuncture in early-stage breast cancer patients taking aromatase inhibitors.
Editor's Note: Published in JAMA Network Open, the full text of this study is available by clicking here.
Acupuncture Today editorial staff members research, investigate and write articles for the publication on an ongoing basis. To contact the Editorial Department or submit an article of your own for consideration, email mailto:
.