Journal de la science et de la recherche sur le cancer
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The effect of Auriculotherapy in the Control of Chemotherapy-Induced Nausea and Vomiting in Women with Breast Cancer

Mitra Reyhani Ph.D.1* Seyedeh Aghaghia Reza Tofighi BS2*

Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is one of the most common and feared side effects of chemotherapy especially in breast cancer. Despite recent advances in pharmacologic antiemetic therapy, additional treatment for break- through CINV is needed. Auriculotherapy, is a safe alternative medicine procedure with minimal side effects; several ran- domized controlled clinical trials have suggested its efficacy in controlling this side effect. A recent randomized controlled clinical trial in Iran , demonstrated that Auriculotherapy, significantly reduced the proportion of patients experiencing acute stress and vomiting during IVF. That trial, however, did not show that Auriculotherapy, significantly alleviated acute chemotherapy-induced nausea or delayed CINV. The clinical relevance of these results were limited by the fact that they predated the use of aprepitant and that only few Auriculotherapy points were stimulated during Auriculotherapy, treatment. More clinical trials to study the effect of acupuncture with additional antiemetic acupuncture points in ad- junct to modern pharmacologic antiemetic therapy are needed. Chemotherapy-induced nausea and vomiting (CINV) is one of the most common and feared treatment-related side effects among patients with cancer especially in breast cancer . Over the past decade, better understanding of the physiology of CINV and subsequent development of modern pharma- cologic antiemetic agents have substantially improved the control of CINV. However, a study suggests that CINV remains a significant problem among these patients.2 In addition, pharmacologic antiemetic agents are expensive and associated with potential side effects, and therefore exploring nonpharmacologic options for controlling CINV is important. Auric- ulotherapy, is an Chinese , europian medical technique proven to be effective and safe in treating multiple conditions, including nausea and vomiting caused by pregnancy,3 sea sickness,4 surgery,5 and chemotherapy.