Pilot study of acupuncture for patient quality of life in cancer
Research type
Research Study
Full title
A pilot study of the use of acupuncture to improve quality of life in cancer patients undergoing radical (curative) treatment
IRAS ID
162606
Contact name
Tabitha Kavoi
Contact email
Sponsor organisation
Research Support (Joint Research Office) UCLH
Duration of Study in the UK
0 years, 11 months, 31 days
Research summary
Randomised controlled pilot clinical trial to explore the feasibility and acceptability of all aspects of a definitive clinical trial of the impact of acupuncture, delivered by appropriate health care professionals trained in acupuncture, on quality of life of patients with cancer.
Patients will be randomly allocated to receive either: 1) acupuncture in addition to standard care or 2) standard care alone.
Patients will be recruited at two stages of cancer treatment:
• During radiotherapy treatment
• Symptom management after completion of cancer treatment.Patients will be treated by health care professionals who would normally be involved in their care at the respective stages of treatment, and who have been trained in acupuncture and its use in cancer. The study will assess the feasibility and acceptability of all aspects of a controlled trial of acupuncture for patients with cancer at both time points. In addition the pilot study will provide preliminary data on effectiveness to inform the sample size calculation for a controlled clinical trial, and preliminary data on the cost effectiveness of cancer patients receiving acupuncture. No restrictions will be placed on the standard care provided by those healthcare professionals treating participating patients. Use of prescribed and non-prescribed treatments will be recorded during the study.
Patients who agree to participate in the study will be allocated to trial arms by computer-generated randomisation. The randomisation of patients to treatment arms will be performed remotely by the UCL Cancer Trials Centre. Randomisation will be stratified by disgnostic group and patient age.
Three nested qualitative studies will explore:
• The experiences of radiotherapy patients taking part in the pilot study.
• The experiences of patients who have completed cancer treatment taking part in the pilot study.
• The experiences of the health care professionals providing the treatment and other key stakeholders at UCH Macmillan Cancer Centre/Radiotherapy Department.REC name
London - Bromley Research Ethics Committee
REC reference
14/LO/2116
Date of REC Opinion
26 Nov 2014
REC opinion
Unfavourable Opinion