Acupuncture for the Treatment of Paraneoplastic Night Sweats

• Main Author: Visweswaran Ramasamy
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: Medical Association of Pharmacopuncture Institute 2018-08-01
• Series: Journal of Acupuncture & Meridian Studies
• Online Access: http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S2005290117302303

This case report describes acupuncture treatment to manage paraneoplastic night sweating secondary to pancreatic cancer. A 56-year-old gentleman with a 2-month history of night sweating responded well over a 10-week course of acupuncture treatment. Acupuncture was selected for symptom management after no success was achieved with pharmacological and conventional managements. The severity of night sweating had reduced from 9/10 to 1/10 on visual analog scale at the end of treatment. This case report suggests that acupuncture has a favorable effect on paraneoplastic night sweating in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer and recommends further research. Keywords: acupuncture, pancreatic cancer, paraneoplastic, sweating