"I was diagnosed with stage III uterine cancer in February 2009 and after surgery, underwent four months of chemotherapy, followed immediately by five and a half weeks of radiation therapy. Both of these treatments cause a variety of unpleasant side effects, including neuropathy and muscle/joint pain from the chemotherapy and extreme fatigue, nausea, and digestive upset from both. I started seeing a skilled acupuncturist once a week shortly after I began chemotherapy and have continued through the end of the radiation treatment. I plan to continue until I feel fully recovered from the side effects. Although acupuncture cannot completely remove all side effects, I found that it greatly lessened the unpleasant symptoms. For example, neuropathy (where the patient experiences numbness in the extremities) is a very common and potentially extremely serious and even permanent result of chemotherapy. If it progresses, often chemotherapy must be stopped and the patient does not receive the entire, optimal dose. I started feeling the beginning tingling of neuropathy in my fingers and toes after each chemo infusion. After my weekly acupuncture, these sensations went away almost completely and by the end of chemotherapy, I had only a very minimal amount of numbness that is almost gone at this point. Acupuncture also helped a lot with reducing the extremely uncomfortable muscle and joint pain and also lessened my fatigue and digestive problems. I was able to get through the full regimen of rigorous chemotherapy on schedule and, except for a few days right after each treatment, maintain most of my normal activities. My white blood count also remained normal through chemotherapy until the very end (which is unusual) and I attribute this to the effects of acupuncture as well. Radiation therapy was even more debilitating that the chemo. Although I did experience digestive upset and fatigue, I found that after acupuncture, these side effects were less bothersome.

I can't stress enough how helpful acupuncture has been to me. Often the side effects of cancer treatment can feel worse to the patient than the cancer itself and can negatively impact the patient's quality of life during and after treatment. With the help of acupuncture, I was able to get through both of the treatments completely on schedule and to continue to live my life as I was doing so."

Kate Wheatman
Lost her battle to Uterine Cancer, Pleasanton, CA 

"When my sister, Joanne, was rushed to Stanford Hospital in August 2008, and diagnosed with Metastatic Breast cancer, my world stood still. I had no idea of the path ahead of her or me, as her caregiver. She had severe lymphoedema in legs, feet and her entire left arm and hand. I knew I needed to find some relief for her. We contacted a lady from UCSF who was wonderful in treating lymphodema and showed us the techniques that we could help her with daily. Additionally, we were able to find a massage person who would come to her home a few times a week, to do therapeutic massage, and the combination of these two reduced my sister's pain, swelling and discomfort. It allowed her body to rest and concentrate on healing. Without this care, I am not sure she would be doing as well as she is today. She has full range of motion back in her arms, hands, feet and legs, which allows her to drive (a task she could not do in her previous condition) walk and do more "everyday normal things" and be able to return to work part-time. Healing therapies were options that worked, and without a fund from which to help financially, this would have been prohibitive to her finances."

Mary Byrne Hernandez
Caregiver

"As a survivor of a stage 3 cancer and a cancer coach, I have had personal experience with using CAM/integrative cancer services and helping my clients find appropriate integrative therapies. I strongly believe there is a universal, fundamental value in using integrative cancer services that is threefold: It EMPOWERS people with skills, tools and treatments that support them on all levels through their illness and recovery; it ENGAGES people more fully in their own unique way of healing, and it ENCOURAGES people to experience their cancer in a way that is more meaningful and positive for them. These benefits, combined with the individual gifts of a particular therapy or resource, have tremendous power, offering all survivors hope and healing."

Carole O'Toole
Author, "Healing Outside the Margins"

"During my fight with cancer, I sought integrative and complementary therapies. The immediate effect for me was a reduction in my feeling of anxiousness. I was able to relax and experience a calming quietness."

Andy Hunt
Cancer Survivor, Pleasanton, CA

"I am a yoga-practicing, granola-eating tree hugger with a lifelong interest in alternative medicine…and I was diagnosed with breast cancer in July 2007.

I was fortunate to have health insurance to cover the costs of a mastectomy, four breast reconstruction surgeries, and months of chemotherapy. I also chose to use alternative medicine because I believed in it, and selected alternative therapies that could:

• Allow my body to respond optimally to traditional treatments
• Help with the treatments' side effects
• Help me manage stress

I was doubly fortunately I had the financial ability to pay for some or all of the costs for alternative therapies not covered by my health insurance.

The therapies I chose complemented my traditional treatments and were low tech routes to feeling well during a particularly rough patch:

If didn’t have these services, I might have given up when the cancer treatment side effects hit hard. Over the course of 4 months of treatment, I experienced severe back pain, declining energy to do the simplest of tasks, no appetite leading to a significant drop in weight, and lack of deep, restful sleep. Those were only the physical effects of treatment; the emotional impact was equally devastating."

Carol Mondello-Settle
Breast Cancer Survivor

"After 45 minutes, I could visibly see the swelling in my leg go down by 1/3rd!  And, I could feel the fluids moving within my body." 

Joanne Byrne
Living with cancer and experiencing the wondrous effects of acupressure

"I am doing two acupuncture treatments per week and this is an amazing discovery for me. It has lowered my heart rate and stress, and it has taken some of the heat out of my neck, and smoothed my throat."

Joe Pryor
Currently going through cancer treatment for throat cancer