June 2014

Support Care Cancer. 2014 May;22(5):1409-15

How long do the effects of acupuncture on hot flashes persist in cancer patients?

Frisk JW, Hammar ML, Ingvar M, Spetz Holm AC

A systematic literature search identified 222 articles which evaluated the long-term effects ofacupuncture on vasomotor symptoms in women with breast cancer and men with prostate cancer. 17 of these met the inclusion criteria of which 7 had a Jadad score of at least 3. Six of these studies measured frequency of hot flashes weighted in relation to number of patients (n = 172). Acupuncture reduced hot flashes on average by 43 %. At the last follow-up (mean 5.8 months, range 3-9 months) after the end of therapy, the weighted reduction from baseline was sustained at 46 % in the 153 of 172 patients (89 %) who were followed up.

Prepared by Jason Boland