title: Effects of acupuncture on leucopenia, neutropenia, NK, and B cells in cancer patients: a randomized pilot study.
abstract: Chemotherapy is one of most significant therapeutic approaches to cancer. Immune system functional state is considered a major prognostic and predictive impact on the success of chemotherapy and it has an important role on patients' psychoemotional state and quality of life. In Chinese medicine, chemotherapy is understood as "toxic cold" that may induce a progressive hypofunctional state of immune system, thus compromising the fast recovery of immunity during chemotherapy. In this study, we performed a standardized acupuncture and moxibustion protocol to enhance immunity in cancer patients undergoing chemotherapy and to assess if the improvement of immunity status correlates with a better psychoemotional state and quality of life.
authors.affiliation: Instituto Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira No. 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Irene
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pais
authors.affiliation: Instituto Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira No. 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal ; Service of Emergency, Internal Medicine, Hospital Center of S. João, Oporto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Nuno
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Correia
authors.affiliation: Service of Oncology, Hospital Center of S. João, Oporto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Isabel
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Pimentel
authors.affiliation: Service of Clinical Pathology, Hospital Center of S. João, Oporto, Portugal ; ISPUP-EPI Unit, Institute of Public Health, University of Oporto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Maria José
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Teles
authors.affiliation: Service of Clinical Pathology, Porto Hospital Center, Oporto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Esmeralda
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Neves
authors.affiliation: Service of Clinical Pathology, Porto Hospital Center, Oporto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Júlia
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Vasconcelos
authors.affiliation: Service of Clinical Pathology, Porto Hospital Center, Oporto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Judite
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Guimarães
authors.affiliation: Service of Clinical Pathology, Porto Hospital Center, Oporto, Portugal.
authors.forename: Nancy
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Azevedo
authors.affiliation: Department of Oncology, Hospital Center of Vila Nova de Gaia/Espinho, Portugal.
authors.forename: António
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moreira Pinto
authors.affiliation: Instituto Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira No. 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal ; Oporto Biomechanics Laboratory, Portugal.
authors.forename: Jorge
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Machado
authors.affiliation: Department of Pharmaceutical Biology, Institute of Pharmacy and Biochemistry, Johannes Gutenberg University, Germany.
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Efferth
authors.affiliation: Instituto Ciências Biomédicas Abel Salazar, Universidade do Porto, Rua de Jorge Viterbo Ferreira No. 228, 4050-313 Porto, Portugal ; Heidelberg School of Chinese Medicine, Germany.
authors.forename: Henry J
authors.initials: HJ
authors.lastname: Greten