Chiropractic Care During Cancer Treatment

When someone has been diagnosed with cancer, they often want to do everything in their power to combat the disease and beat it.  Cancer treatment, which will hopefully help you beat the disease, is also very hard on the body and can make you feel very ill.  Chemicals are harsh because of the hard work they need to do to combat such a vicious disease but many people often look for any natural therapies that can serve as a companion to traditional cancer treatment.  Chiropractic care has been shown to be beneficial for a variety of bodily ailments and can also be beneficial during cancer treatment.  The American Chiropractic Association describes what exactly chiropractic care is, “The most common therapeutic procedure performed by doctors of chiropractic is known as “spinal manipulation,” also called “chiropractic adjustment.”   The purpose of manipulation is to restore joint mobility by manually applying a controlled force into joints that have become hypomobile – or restricted in their movement – as a result of a tissue injury. Tissue injury can be caused by a single traumatic event, such as improper lifting of a heavy object, or through repetitive stresses, such as sitting in an awkward position with poor spinal posture for an extended period of time. In either case, injured tissues undergo physical and chemical changes that can cause inflammation, pain, and diminished function for the sufferer. Manipulation, or adjustment of the affected joint and tissues, restores mobility, thereby alleviating pain and muscle tightness, and allowing tissues to heal.”  While chiropractic may sound great to heal your aches and pains, you may be wondering just how it can help during cancer treatment.

Chemotherapy and radiation therapy, unfortunately, often have side effects ranging from nausea to neuropathy to muscle and joint paint to headaches and more.  In addition to pain and discomfort from treatment, being diagnosed with and treating cancer can be incredibly stressful.  All of that tension and stress does not make the fight against cancer any easier so, while chiropractic will not cure cancer, it is a very helpful addition to treatment so that you can better manage symptoms.  BreastCancer.Org makes note that breast cancer patients and survivors may benefit from chiropractic care, “Studies have shown that chiropractic therapy can help relieve headaches and back and joint pain in women who have had breast cancer treatment. Other studies have looked at using chiropractic therapy to relieve menopausal symptoms in breast cancer survivors, but the results were mixed.”  And the benefits are not just for breast cancer patients, the American Cancer Society notes the benefits of chiropractic care  as a compliment to cancer treatment, “Available scientific evidence does not support claims that chiropractic treatment cures cancer or any other life-threatening illness. However, chiropractic treatment has been shown to help treat lower back pain and other pain caused by muscle or bone problems. It can also promote relaxation and stress reduction.”  Consult your physician before beginning any new therapies and discuss what would be in your best interest based on your personal health history.

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