Chinese Medicine

Just like Ayurveda, Chinese Medicine has been around for quite some time. Given the seclusion of China and the ruling state from the rest of the world since the beginning of time, it can be safely said that Chinese medicine was built independently through the years with slight input from trade routes like Silk Route. The impression of India’s Ayurveda can be seen in the way herbs and spices -although under different names- are used in the treatment of various ailments. The similarities, however, end there. 

Chinese medicine, unlike Ayurveda, focuses on the balance of the Chi energy of an individual. In simple terms, Chi is the force which a human being harnesses from his/her surroundings including food and utilises to stay alive and healthy. There are similar concepts in Indian Meditation and Ayurveda but not as unique and all-encompassing as this one. Attaining a balance in the outgoing and incoming energy for a human being is the primary motive in Chinese medicine which is achieved through a culmination of herbs, ointments, physical exercises, and acupuncture. 

Primarily practised in the North China region Chinese Medicine, or rather the conventional Chinese medicine is based on the use of Herbal medicine, acupuncture, dietary changes, and exercise to balance the amount of Chi in a person’s body. It is based on Chi which is termed as the body’s vital energy circulating through our body channels called medians that have branches connected to our bodily organs and functions. Though the whole concept and backing might seem far-fetched, at the core of it all is the principle that our body is one functional organism rather than a set of divided organ systems that don’t interact with each other. As such Chinese medicine instead of focusing on one organ system strives to achieve a balance and integration between various organ systems of the body which should be the ultimate objective of any treatment method.

Chinese Medicine in Managing Symptoms

A substantial scientific literature has found that certain Chinese Medicine therapies are effective and safe in supporting or complementing conventional treatments. During radiotherapy and chemotherapy, this treatment can reduce toxic side effects such as these:

• Myelosuppression (suppression of bone marrow)
• Gastrointestinal reactions such as nausea and vomiting
• Liver or kidney impairment
• Skin and mucosa radiation injuries
• Fatigue
• Anorexia (loss of appetite)
• Thirst
• White blood cell reduction
• Cough

Chinese Medicine and cancer

Chinese Medicine combined with chemotherapy has improved efficacy—decreasing cancer activity or progression and increasing survival—with fewer adverse reactions compared to chemotherapy alone. Chinese Medicine, either alone or as an adjuvant therapy, shows anticancer effects in limited, preliminary studies, with examples of herbs given for each effect:

• Induce apoptosis (programmed cell death) of cancer cells (Mylabris, garlic, cinobufacini, Bu-Zhong-Yi-Qi-Tang, Sho-Saiko-To)
• Promote functions of the immune system (Mylabris, ginseng)
• Promote the activity of lymphocytes, natural killer cells and macrophages 
• Prevent the incidence of cancer in patients with precancerous lesions and conditions (quercetin, curcumin, silymarin [milk thistle], ginseng, rutin)
• Increase tumor response to therapy (astragalus)
• Inhibit tumor growth (Bu-Zhong-Yi-Qi-Tang, Sho-Saiko-To, garlic)
• Inhibit angiogenesis (blood vessel growth to feed tumors) (Ginkgo biloba extract, Scutellaria barbata D., YZXJ formulation)
• Reduce mortality (astragalus)
• Prevent and treat recurrence and metastasis (Juzen-Taiho-To, YZXJ formulation)

In sum, evidence indicates that Chinese Medicine is worth considering as part of integrative cancer care. 

Even if Allopathic medicine focuses on the particular region or organ system affected with the ailment, we all know that a disease like Cancer affects the entire body. Instead of trying a single line approach Chinese Medicine has been and is still used to create a synergy in the body’s defence against Cancer and all-pervading pathogens. To get more information about Chinese medicine, it’s current practice status, and how you should approach it given your disease and stage you’re in, you can utilise the following links. 

References & More Information

1. Credit: Beyond Conventional Care Therapies
2. ZenOnco.io Integrative Oncology Cancer Care
3. Liu J, Wang S, Zhang Y, Fan HT, Lin HS. Traditional Chinese medicine and cancer: history, present situation, and development. Thoracic Cancer. 2015 Sep;6(5):561-9.
4. Ye L, Jia Y et al. Traditional Chinese medicine in the prevention and treatment of cancer and cancer metastasis. Oncology Letters. 2015 Sep;10(3):1240-1250; Liu J, Wang S, Zhang Y, Fan HT, Lin HS. Traditional Chinese medicine and cancer: History, present situation, and development. Thoracic Cancer. 2015 Sep;6(5):561-9; Xu Y, Mao JJ et al. Association between use of traditional Chinese medicine herbal therapy and survival outcomes in patients with stage II and III colorectal cancer: a multicenter prospective cohort study. Journal of the National Cancer Institute. Monographs. 2017 Nov 1;2017(52).
5. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health: Traditional Chinese Medicine: In Depth
6. National Certification Commission for Acupuncture and Oriental Medicine:
   1. About the Medicine
   2. Find a Provider Directory
7. Holistic Health Library: Five Element Theory Diet
8. Liu J, Wang S, Zhang Y, Fan HT, Lin HS. Traditional Chinese medicine and cancer: history, present situation, and development. Thoracic Cancer. 2015 Sep;6(5):561-9.
9. Ho ZC. Principles of diet therapy in ancient Chinese medicine: ‘Huang Di Nei Jing’. Asia Pacific Journal of Clinical Nutrition. 1993 Jun;2(2):91-5.
10. Ye L, Jia Y et al. Traditional Chinese medicine in the prevention and treatment of cancer and cancer metastasis. Oncology Letters. 2015 Sep;10(3):1240-1250.