A Systematic Review of Experimental and Clinical Acupuncture in Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy

Abstract

Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is a common side effect that can be very disabling and can limit or delay the dose of chemotherapy that can be administered. Acupuncture may be effective for treating peripheral neuropathy. The aim of this study was to review the available literature on the use of acupuncture for CIPN. The systematic literature search was performed using MEDLINE, Google Scholar, Cochrane Database, CINHAL, and ISI Proceedings. Hand searching was conducted, and consensus was reached on all extracted data. Only papers in the English language were included, irrespective of study design. From 3989 retrieved papers, 8 relevant papers were identified. One was an experimental study which showed that electroacupuncture suppressed CIPN pain in rats. In addition, there were 7 very heterogeneous clinical studies, 1 controlled randomised study using auricular acupuncture, 2 randomized controlled studies using somatic acupuncture, and 3 case series/case reports which suggested a positive effect of acupuncture in CIPN. Conclusions. Only one controlled randomised study demonstrated that acupuncture may be beneficial for CIPN. All the clinical studies reviewed had important methodological limitations. Further studies with robust methodology are needed to demonstrate the role of acupuncture for treating CIPN resulting from cancer treatment.

Phase 2 Study of Acupuncture-Like Transcutaneous Nerve Stimulation for Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy

“…5 Needle acupuncture is an invasive procedure with minor risks. It requires a licensed acupuncturist, can be expensive, and may not be acceptable for all patients.…”

Pharmacological Approaches and Natural Products for Prevention of Chemotherapy-Induced Peripheral Neuropathy - A Review

“…Yet, the effectiveness of nonpharmacologic interventions, such as electrocutaneous nerve stimulation and acupuncture have been evaluated in more specific reviews [15].…”

A pilot clinical trial assessing the efficacy and safety of supplementation with a B complex vitamin to reduce the incidence of chemotherapy induced peripheral neuropathy in patients diagnosed with a malignancy

“…Of those, there were only 7 clinical trials [278][279][280][281][282][283][284] and 1 experimental study [285] which was a rat study. The overall conclusion from the systemic review [275] was that acupuncture generally had positive effects on CIPN by reducing the pain score in most studies. The limitations identified in the trials reviewed include small sample size, poor controls or no controls, poor randomisation and lack of blinding.…”

“…These include acupuncture [275], herbal medicine [276] and contact needle therapy [277]. Acupuncture has the most clinical trials whilst herbal medicine has limited research mainly based on in vitro and animal studies.…”

“…A 2013 systemic review on experimental and clinical acupuncture in CIPN [275] identified 3989 articles on acupuncture, however only 98 were relevant to CIPN. Of those, there were only 7 clinical trials [278][279][280][281][282][283][284] and 1 experimental study [285] which was a rat study.…”