Tai chi and qigong
Slow, low-impact movement practices from Chinese tradition improve fatigue, sleep and balance in people with cancer. Randomised trials are moderately sized and positive, and the 2024 fatigue guideline recommends them during treatment.
Overview
Tai chi and qigong combine slow choreographed movement, weight shifting and breath control. Randomised trials in breast, lung and prostate cancer report reductions in fatigue and improvements in sleep, balance and quality of life. In a randomised trial of 90 breast cancer survivors with insomnia (Irwin et al., JCO 2017), tai chi chih was non-inferior to cognitive behavioural therapy for insomnia at 15 months. The 2024 SIO-ASCO fatigue guideline recommends tai chi or qigong for fatigue during treatment. The practices are well suited to older adults and to people with balance problems, including chemotherapy neuropathy, where fall prevention matters. As with yoga, the trials are unblinded and control conditions vary.
How it works
Meditative movement lowers sympathetic tone and inflammatory markers, trains proprioception and leg strength, and provides regular gentle aerobic activity.
- Non-inferior to CBT-I for insomnia in one trial
- Suitable for frail and older patients
- Recommended for fatigue in SIO-ASCO 2024
- Moderate-sized trials
- Heterogeneous styles and doses
- No survival or recurrence data
Latest papers
topQuery for this technology: (TITLE:"Tai chi and qigong" OR ABSTRACT:"Tai chi and qigong") AND (cancer OR tumor OR tumour OR oncology OR carcinoma OR lymphoma OR leukemia OR leukaemia OR myeloma OR sarcoma OR melanoma OR glioma). Results are unfiltered search hits about Tai chi and qigong, not a curated reading list.
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