Cancer, HIV/AIDS, and Immune Disorders: Acupuncture, What Works and What Does Not

In cancer therapy, acupuncture can help control nausea and other side effects of chemotherapy and radiation. For treatment of HIV and AIDS, it has been shown to increase total white blood cells and T-cell production. In a controversial program in Miami, acupuncture is allegedly increasing life span of AIDS patients and improving quality of life, according to Dr. Harvey Grossbard. In the special CAM issue of the Journal of the American Medical Association in November 1998, a research team from the National Institutes of Health, the University of Minnesota, and the University of Colorado reported that acupuncture was not effective in treating nerve pain due to HIV infection. There appear to be no known effective treatments including acupuncture.

Finally, there is some preliminary evidence that acupuncture may be of general value in treating chronic fatigue syndrome, asthma, ulcerative colitis, rheumatoid arthritis, and collagen-vascular diseases.

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From THE BEST ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE: WHAT WORKS? WHAT DOES NOT? by Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier.
Copyright © 2000 by Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier, Inc.
Reprinted by permission of Simon & Schuster, Inc., New York, New York.

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Unless otherwise indicated, Dr. Kenneth R. Pelletier. All Rights Reserved.
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