Related Experiment Video
Updated: Feb 26, 2026
Acupoint Application as a Traditional Chinese Medicine Treatment for Fatigue Associated with Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Published on: September 5, 2025
Acupuncture for cancer-related fatigue in lung cancer patients: a randomized, double blind, placebo-controlled pilot
Chien-Shan Cheng1,2, Lian-Yu Chen1,2, Zhou-Yu Ning1,2
1Deparment of Integrative Oncology, Fudan University Shanghai Cancer Center, 270 Dong'An Road, Shanghai, 200032, China.
Background:
Cancer-related fatigue (CRF) is a distressing symptom that is the most common unpleasant side effect experienced by lung cancer patients and is challenging for clinical care workers to manage.
Methods:
We performed a randomized, double-blind, placebo-controlled pilot trial to evaluate the clinical effect of acupuncture on CRF in lung cancer patients. Twenty-eight patients presenting with CRF were randomly assigned to active acupuncture or placebo acupuncture groups to receive acupoint stimulation (LI-4, Ren-6, St-36, KI-3, and Sp-6) twice per week for 4 weeks, followed by 2 weeks of follow-up. The primary outcome was the change in intensity of CFR based on the Chinese version of the Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI-C). As the secondary endpoint, the Functional Assessment of Cancer Therapy-Lung Cancer Subscale (FACT-LCS) was adopted to assess the influence of acupuncture on patients' quality of life (QOL). Adverse events and safety of treatments were monitored throughout the trial.
Results:
Our pilot study demonstrated feasibility among patients with appropriate inclusion criteria and good compliance with acupuncture treatment. A significant reduction in the BFI-C score was observed at 2 weeks in the 14 participants who received active acupuncture compared with those receiving the placebo (P < 0.01). At week 6, symptoms further improved according to the BFI-C (P < 0.001) and the FACT-LCS (P = 0.002). There were no significant differences in the incidence of adverse events in either group (P > 0.05).
Conclusion:
Fatigue is a common symptom experienced by lung cancer patients. Acupuncture may be a safe and feasible optional method for adjunctive treatment in cancer palliative care, and appropriately powered trials are warranted to evaluate the effects of acupuncture.
