Breast cancer survivors suffering chronic fatigue saw symptoms improve within weeks
- Chronic fatigue is a common long-lasting effect of breast cancer treatment
- Acupressure – stimulation of specific pressure points on the body – can alleviate symptoms by around a third in just six weeks, researchers say
Rosie Taylor for the Daily Mail
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Cancer survivors could help reduce symptoms of tiredness and exhaustion with a simple do-it-yourself treatment, scientists have found.
Chronic fatigue is a common long-lasting effect of breast cancer treatment, with around a third of patients suffering moderate to severe levels for up to 10 years after the cancer is gone.
But a study has found that using acupressure – stimulation of specific pressure points on the body – can alleviate symptoms by around a third in just six weeks.
Results of the University of Michigan study found two thirds of women who had moderate to severe fatigue returned to normal tiredness levels by using a form of the treatment known as relaxing acupressure.
Using acupressure – stimulation of specific pressure points on the body – can alleviate symptoms of exhaustion in breast cancer survivors
Acupressure is derived from traditional Chinese medicine and involves applying pressure with fingers, thumbs or a device to specific points on the body.
Researchers tested two types of acupressure which stimulate different parts of the body: relaxing acupressure, which is traditionally used to treat insomnia, and stimulating acupressure, which is used to increase energy.
They split a group of 288 breast cancer survivors randomly into three groups, who either performed relaxing acupressure, stimulating acupressure or their usual care, which included sleep-management techniques.
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The woman were given 15 minutes of training on how to find and stimulate the acupressure points so that they could perform it at home for six weeks.
They were told to stimulate each of five or six pressure points for three minutes once a day.
After six weeks of treatment the women were monitored for a further four weeks to see if the effects lasted.
At the end of the trial, both acupressure treatments resulted in significant, sustained improvements in fatigue, with around two in three women from both groups returning to normal fatigue levels.
Only one in three of those who carried on as usual saw the same improvements.
While both acupressure treatments performed well, only relaxing acupressure was found to also improve sleep quality and overall quality of life which continued after the treatment ended.
Around one in 10 participants dropped out of the trial because they felt the daily treatment was too time-consuming and one women quit because she said it was causing bruising.
Chronic fatigue is a common long-lasting effect of breast cancer treatment, with around a third of patients suffering moderate to severe levels for up to 10 years after the cancer is gone
Previous studies have suggested acupuncture could help curb fatigue, but it is less practical as patients must go to a practitioner once or twice a week.
Study author Suzanna Zick said: ‘Fatigue is an underappreciated symptom across a lot of chronic diseases, especially cancer. It has a significant impact on quality of life.
‘Acupressure is easy to learn and patients can do it themselves. Given the brief training required to learn acupressure, this intervention could be a low-cost option for treating fatigue.’
The researchers are now developing a smartphone app to teach DIY acupressure.
Further studies will include analysing why it works and whether it can benefit patients undergoing cancer treatment or who suffer from different forms of cancer.
The research was published in the journal JAMA Oncology.
Samia al Qadhi, chief executive of Breast Cancer Care, said: ‘It’s great to see from this study how complementary therapies, like acupressure, may help some women manage fatigue as a consequence of their treatment.
‘Ongoing fatigue can have a huge impact on women’s lives, even years after treatment. It may mean they find it difficult to return to work, or could need help with housework or childcare.
‘However, acupressure won’t work for everyone suffering from fatigue, and women may wish to explore other options which could help them.’
Acupressure is derived from traditional Chinese medicine and involves applying pressure with fingers, thumbs or a device to specific points on the body
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