Acupuncture for neuropathy in Multiple Myeloma patients

Acupuncture for Neuropathy in Multiple Myeloma patients

Multiple myeloma is a common cancer of the blood, specifically the plasma cells (a type of white blood cell that makes antibodies). Abnormal plasma cells divide rapidly and crowd out healthy bone marrow cells, including white blood cells and red blood cells, which can cause anemia, and also lead to bone damage and other organ damage. Tumors, called plasmacytomas, can also develop within bones and outside of bone.

Treatments for multiple myeloma, like proteasome inhibitors, can cause multiple side effects including peripheral neuropathy. In some cases, the severity of peripheral neuropathy may lead to a reduced number of treatment cycles or possible discontinuation of treatment. Therefore, decreasing the severity and incidence of peripheral neuropathy is an important factor in continuing treatment.

Various naturopathic medical therapies have shown benefit in reducing symptoms and severity of peripheral neuropathy, including acupuncture. A 2017 research study in BMC Cancer examined the effects of vitamin B12 with or without acupuncture in multiple myeloma patients with peripheral neuropathy. The study found that after 84 days of therapy, patients in both the vitamin B12 and the B12+acupuncture groups experienced an improvement in pain, with the B12+acupuncture group experiencing a greater improvement in pain compared to the B12-only group [1].

Acupuncture (18 sessions over 8 weeks) has also shown benefit in the treatment of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy in breast cancer survivors [2].

[1] https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC5223334/

[2] https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/32297442/

Written by Dr. Dana Kolenich ND