Clinical trial · Interventional
Acupuncture for the Treatment of Chronic Lymphedema
Acupuncture for the Treatment of Chronic Lymphedema: A Feasibility Study
- Source
- ClinicalTrials.gov
- Retrieved
- Sep 8, 2026
- Layer
- normalized (units and labels harmonized; values unchanged)
- Run
- ING-CLINICALTRIALS-20260908-000001
Summary
Brief summary (as posted)
Lymphedema is an accumulation of lymphatic fluid in the tissues that causes swelling, most often in the arms and/or legs, and occasionally in other parts of the body. Lymphedema can occur when lymph vessels are damaged or lymph nodes are removed. Lymphedema can develop right after breast cancer treatment or weeks, months, or even years later. For many people, available treatments for lymphedema are not effective. Recent evidence suggests that acupuncture may help reduce the symptoms of lymphedema. The purpose of this study is to determine the effects of acupuncture on chronic lymphedema. This study will look further at whether acupuncture can reduce lymphedema and help us to understand immune changes that may be associated with improvements in lymphedema.
Conditions
Conditions (2)
Free-text conditions as registered, with the CancerIndex entity they were reconciled to and the match type.
| Condition (as posted) | Mapped entity | Match | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|
| Breast Cancer | Malignant Breast Neoplasm | CURATED_EXACT | 0.92 |
| Lymphedema | — | UNRESOLVED | — |
Interventions
Interventions (1)
| Intervention | Type | Mapped drug | Match |
|---|---|---|---|
| Acupuncture | Procedure | — | UNRESOLVED |
Design
Arms and outcomes
Arms (1)
- type
- EXPERIMENTAL
- label
- Acupuncture
- description
- Each patient will receive two acupuncture treatments each week for four consecutive weeks. At the end of four weeks, the intervention will be complete.
- interventionNames
- Procedure: Acupuncture
Primary outcomes (1)
- measure
- To obtain preliminary evidence of the effects of acupuncture on chronic lymphedema due to breast cancer treatment.
- timeFrame
- twice weekly for four consecutive weeks and will be followed for an additional 6 months
Secondary outcomes (2)
- measure
- To further evaluate the safety of acupuncture in this setting.
- timeFrame
- 6 months to record any side effects that may occur post-treatment
Eligibility
Eligibility (as posted)
- Sex
- Female
- Minimum age
- 18 Years
Show eligibility criteria text
Inclusion Criteria: * Women age 18 or older willing to sign consent. * Lymphedema in an arm as a result of surgery, chemotherapy, and/or radiation therapy for breast cancer per Breast surgeon or medical oncologist. * Patients must have received a clinical diagnosis of lymphedema for at least 6 months and no more than 5 years after diagnosis of chronic lymphedema. * The affected arm must be \>2cm larger than the unaffected arm; this is the standard diagnosis and the one used in the MSKCC studies cited above. The standard measurement techniques will be applied 20. Exclusion Criteria: * Previous acupuncture treatment for lymphedema * Diuretic use * History of primary (congenital) lymphedema * Metastatic cancer * History of autoimmune disorder (including lupus, rheumatoid arthritis, systemic sclerosis) * History of other fibroproliferative disorder including cirrhosis, pulmonary fibrosis, kidney fibrosis, systemic sclerosis/scleroderma * Current treatment with corticosteroids * Treatment with myelosuppressive or stimulatory drugs within 6 months of enrollment * History of bone marrow transplantation
References
Publications (1)
- DERIVEDCassileth BR, Van Zee KJ, Yeung KS, Coleton MI, Cohen S, Chan YH, Vickers AJ, Sjoberg DD, Hudis CA. Acupuncture in the treatment of upper-limb lymphedema: results of a pilot study. Cancer. 2013 Jul 1;119(13):2455-61. doi: 10.1002/cncr.28093. Epub 2013 Apr 10. PMID 23576267