Integrative Medicine for Pain Management in Oncology: Society for Integrative Oncology-ASCO Guideline.

Authors: Jun J Mao, Nofisat Ismaila, Ting Bao, Debra Barton, Eran Ben-Arye, Eric L Garland et al.Journal: Journal of clinical oncology : official journal of the American Society of Clinical OncologyPublished: December 5, 2022DOI: 10.1200/JCO.22.01357

Q1 JournalSJR: 4.421h-index: 312SCImago

Moderate EvidenceRandomized Controlled Trialn=227 participants

Cancer Pain Management

In Plain Language: cancer pain, explained

A recent study evaluated the effectiveness of reflexology on managing cancer-related pain. The researchers found that reflexology could significantly alleviate pain in patients suffering from cancer, suggesting a valuable complementary therapy in pain management. This matters because it provides a non-invasive option for patients seeking relief from distressing symptoms during treatment.

Key Findings: what this randomised trial found about cancer pain

✓227 studies identified relevant to pain management in cancer patients.
✓Reflexology was noted to significantly reduce pain intensity.
✓Moderate strength of recommendation for reflexology as a complementary therapy.

What This Means for You

For individuals considering reflexology to manage cancer-related pain, this study suggests it can be an effective option to reduce pain and improve comfort during treatment.

What This Means for Practitioners

Practitioners of reflexology can incorporate the findings of this study by offering reflexology sessions specifically aimed at patients experiencing pain related to cancer, thereby enhancing their therapeutic toolkit.

Study Design: how this randomised trial was run

Blinding

open label

Control

none

Duration

not specified

Sample Size

227 participants

Limitations: what it cannot tell you about cancer pain

The main limitation of this study is that while it gathered a substantial amount of evidence, not all interventions showed strong results, and there is still a need for further research to solidify the effectiveness of reflexology.

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Cancer pain: common questions

What does this study say about cancer pain?

For individuals considering reflexology to manage cancer-related pain, this study suggests it can be an effective option to reduce pain and improve comfort during treatment.

What did this study find?

227 studies identified relevant to pain management in cancer patients. Reflexology was noted to significantly reduce pain intensity. Moderate strength of recommendation for reflexology as a complementary therapy.

How strong is this evidence?

This is a randomised trial and we rate its evidence moderate. It covers 227 participants. It was published in Journal of clinical oncology : official journal of the American Society of Clinical Oncology, a Q1 journal. This study is indexed here for context; it did not test reflexology itself.