The safety of acupuncture in children and adolescents with cancer therapy-related thrombocytopenia

Purpose Acupuncture is frequently used to manage the side effects associated with cancer therapy. In acupuncture practice, the presence of thrombocytopenia is a relative contraindication to acupuncture use among patients with cancer. However, the safety of acupuncture in patients with cancer treatment-related thrombocytopenia has not been previously investigated. Methods Medical records of 32 patients receiving acupuncture at an academic medical center with an established acupuncture program during treatment for cancer or during stem cell transplantation were reviewed. Results Of 237 acupuncture sessions, 20%, 8%, and 19% of the sessions were administered to patients with severe, moderate, and mild thrombocytopenia, respectively. No bleeding side effects were observed. Conclusions This retrospective case series provides descriptive data on the safety of acupuncture using Japanese J-type Seirin needles, with mild manual stimulation administered at 0.5-cun depth in patients with cancer with and without thrombocytopenia. Prospective trials are needed to confirm these initial observations.