Auricular Point Acupressure to Manage Chemotherapy Induced Neuropathy

超过60%的癌症患者经历化疗诱导的神经病变（CIN），这是化疗的严重副作用。 化疗（包括铂类药物、长春花生物碱、紫杉烷和/或硼替佐米）。CIN可能导致 治疗延迟、剂量减少或治疗中止，这可能会影响生存率。与 随着癌症治疗的改善和生存期的延长，CIN的晚期效应继续产生显著的 高达50%的癌症幸存者在治疗后6年患有CIN，其中1.8倍的人患有CIN。 增加了福尔斯跌倒的风险。CIN继续导致严重的功能障碍，对治疗质量产生负面影响。 生命，并显著要求高的医疗保健成本和资源使用。 我们建议测试耳穴指压（阿帕）-一个非侵入性和非药物的病人 管理战略-作为CIN的创新解决方案。阿帕是从耳针发展而来的， 是一种侵入性（使用针头）和被动治疗（由有执照的医生管理）。阿帕是 为疼痛患者提供无创和积极的治疗。它涉及无针穿刺样刺激 耳尖。小种子由熟练的提供者贴在特定的耳穴上，患者按下 种子刺激耳朵点每天三次，每次三分钟，每天共九分钟， 达到缓解疼痛的效果。阿帕在耳部刺激后1-2分钟内提供疼痛缓解并持续缓解疼痛 在为期4周的阿帕干预后持续1个月。阿帕在台湾、中国和欧洲很受欢迎。虽然它的 在美国使用很少，有限数量的临床试验支持APA在疼痛管理中的应用。 本研究将为全面了解其内在机制提供重要信息。 APA对CIN的影响，并为将阿帕作为临床环境中CIN管理的一部分提供强大的推动力。

More than 60% cancer patients experience chemotherapy-induced neuropathy (CIN), a severe side effect of chemotherapy (including platinum drugs, vinca alkaloids, taxanes and/or bortezomib). CIN may cause treatment delays, dose reductions, or discontinuation of therapy which can affect survival rates. With improved cancer treatments and longer survival, the late effects of CIN continue to produce a significant burden in up to 50% of cancer survivors who are suffering from CIN 6 years after treatment, with a 1.8-fold increased risk of falls. CIN continues to cause significant functional disability, negatively impacts quality of life, and significantly demands high health care costs and resource use. We propose to test auricular point acupressure (APA)—a non-invasive and nonpharmacological patient managed strategy—as an innovative solution for CIN. APA is developed from auricular acupuncture, which is an invasive (using needles) and passive treatment (administered by a licensed practitioner). APA is a non-invasive and active treatment for patients with pain. It involves needleless acupuncture-like stimulation of ear points. Small seeds are taped on specific ear points by a skilled provider and patients press on the seeds to stimulate ear points three times daily, three minutes per time, for a total of nine minutes per day to achieve pain relief. APA provides pain relief within 1–2 minutes after ear stimulation and sustains pain relief for one month after a 4-week APA intervention. APA is popular in Taiwan, China, and Europe. Though its use is sparse in the U.S., a limited number of clinical trials have supported APA in pain management. This study will provide vital information to gain a comprehensive understanding of underlying mechanism of APA on CIN and provide strong impetus for including APA as part of CIN management in clinical settings.