Acupuncture vs. sham needles: a test for chemo nerve damage
NCT ID NCT04651907
First seen Jul 24, 2026 · Last updated Sep 09, 2026 · Updated 4 times
Summary
This trial tests whether real acupuncture can reduce the numbness, tingling, and pain that chemotherapy often leaves behind. Cancer survivors with persistent nerve symptoms will receive either genuine acupuncture or a sham version with superficial needling at non-acupoints. The goal is to see if the real treatment leads to meaningful improvement in daily function and discomfort.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- acupuncture (real vs. sham minimal acupuncture)
- What this could lead to
- If effective, acupuncture could offer a drug-free option to relieve chemotherapy-induced nerve damage symptoms like numbness and pain.
- What could go wrong
- This is a relatively small trial, and the sham control may also produce some benefit, making it hard to prove a clear advantage. Results may not apply to all chemotherapy types.
This is an AI summary of the original study and may miss details. Read our disclaimer.
Study facts
What this study's own registry entry says, in plain language.
- Phase
-
Not a phased trial
Phase numbers describe drug development. The registry uses this when they do not apply, as it does for trials of devices, procedures or behaviour changes, and for observational studies.
- Participants
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69 people
The number who actually took part.
- Started
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Feb 2021
- Finished
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Jun 2025
- Lead sponsor
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Other sponsor
The registry's catch-all category, for sponsors it does not file as a company, a government agency, or a research network.
Who can take part
This study's own entry requirements. Only the study team can say for certain whether you qualify.
- Ages
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20 years and older
- Sex
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Anyone
- Healthy volunteers
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Not accepted
This study is not open to healthy volunteers. The entry requirements below say who it is open to.
Show the full entry requirements Hide the full entry requirements
Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: The study will enroll patients with a symptom of peripheral neuropathy, including paresthesia, numbness, glove-and-stocking sensory loss distribution or pain in four limbs, and meet the following inclusion criteria: 1. All adult cancer patients (Age≧20-year-old) who received chemotherapy regimens, including adjuvant and neoadjuvant therapy 2. Stage I-III cancer patients 3. Completed chemotherapy regimens more than3 months, including Taxanes (paclitaxel or docetaxel), platinum (cisplatin, oxaliplatin, carboplatin) 4. Baseline von Frey Monofilament test (Target force at hand) ≧ 0.07gms 5. Baseline von Frey Monofilament test (Target force at foot) ≧ 0.4gms 6. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status ≦3 7. Grading of peripheral sensory neuropathy in National Cancer Institute- common terminology criteria for adverse events,v5.0 (NCI-CTCAE5) ≧1 8. Patients were restricted acupuncture treatment for one month before recruitment 9. Written patient informed consent Exclusion Criteria: Participants with any of the following conditions will be excluded: 1. Uncontrolled Diabetic Mellitus, HbA1c≧7% is inappropriate\[19\]. 2. Diabetic neuropathy diagnosed before receiving chemotherapy 3. Neuropathy from any type of nerve compression (e.g., carpal/tarsal tunnel syndrome, radiculopathy, spinal stenosis, brachial plexopathy) 4. Concomitant with duloxetine, or another analgesia, including Pregabalin, Venlafaxine, Minocycline, Topical gel, Oxycodone, Naloxone, Cannabinoids, and Angiotensin II type 2 receptor antagonist 5. Severe hemorrhagic coagulopathy or bleeding tendency 6. Unstable cardiovascular disease 7. Severe skin lesions around the treatment sites The researchers will exclude any participants considered to be inappropriate for the study.
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Conditions
The condition(s) this trial relates to.
As listed by the trial registrant
The condition terms exactly as the trial's registrant entered them.
Contacts and locations
Locations
-
China Medical University Hospital
Taichung, 404, Taiwan
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Taipei Veterans General Hospital
Taipei, 112201, Taiwan
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Taiwan Municipal An-Nan Hospital-China Medical University
Tainan, 709, Taiwan
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Chilling out Chemo's side effects: could cold therapy shield nerves?
- Could simple exercises rebuild strength after chemotherapy nerve damage?
- Video analysis could personalize rehab for chemo nerve damage
- Brain training and nerve stretching could ease chemo nerve damage
- Acupuncture and exercise join forces against chemotherapy nerve pain
- New drug candidate AH-008 takes first step toward easing chemotherapy nerve pain