Can acupuncture tame Radiation's harsh side effects?
NCT ID NCT03751566
First seen Jun 25, 2026 · Last updated Jun 27, 2026 · Updated 2 times
Summary
This study is testing whether acupuncture can help reduce the painful side effects of radiation therapy in people with head and neck cancer. Sixty participants will receive either acupuncture plus standard care or standard care alone. The goal is to see if acupuncture can lower the severity of acute toxicity from radiation.
What this could mean
Our plain-language read of the trial. This is informational only, not medical advice or a prediction.
- Active substance
- acupuncture
- What this could lead to
- If it works, this could offer a drug-free way to manage painful side effects of radiation therapy for head and neck cancer patients.
- What could go wrong
- This is a small, early-stage study with only 60 participants. The results may not apply to everyone, and the benefit over standard care is not yet proven.
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
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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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About 60 people
The number the study aims to enrol. It can still change while the study runs.
- Started
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Oct 2021
- Expected to finish
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Oct 2026
An estimate. End dates often move.
- 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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18 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.
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Copied word for word from the study's registry entry, so the wording is the study team's rather than ours.
Inclusion Criteria: * Curative and adjuvant radiotherapy for head and neck tumors; * PS 1-2; * Patient collaboration in evaluation of the toxicity diary. Exclusion Criteria: * Palliative radiotherapy in the head and neck tumor; * PS 3; * Non-compliance of the patient.
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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.
How to take part
Only the study team decides who joins. These are the ways to reach them.
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The places running it
1 site. The list below names each one and where it is.
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The official record
ClinicalTrials.gov lists the study team's own contact details, including names and phone numbers. We don't republish those.
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A doctor treating you
A doctor who knows your case can contact a study site on your behalf, and can tell you whether this study is worth pursuing at all.
Contacts and locations
Locations
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Masaryk Memorial Cancer Institute
RECRUITINGBrno, 65653, Czechia
More trials for these conditions
Other studies related to the condition(s) this trial covers.
- Can a dental assistant keep cancer Patients' mouths healthier during radiation?
- Why do Non-Smokers get head and neck cancer? scientists probe tumor DNA
- Re-irradiation plus cetuximab targets head and neck tumors that return
- Sharper tumor maps: PET scans could tighten radiation beams
- Five days of radiation instead of weeks: a new test for head and neck cancer
- Can an online program ease the burden on cancer caregivers?