Auricular Acupuncture in Patients With Advanced Cancer: a Randomized Clinical Trial.

NCT ID: NCT05762250

Last Updated: 2025-07-31

Study Results

Results pending

The study team has not published outcome measurements, participant flow, or safety data for this trial yet. Check back later for updates.

Basic Information

Get a concise snapshot of the trial, including recruitment status, study phase, enrollment targets, and key timeline milestones.

Recruitment Status

RECRUITING

Clinical Phase

NA

Total Enrollment

125 participants

Study Classification

INTERVENTIONAL

Study Start Date

2023-08-13

Study Completion Date

2026-10-31

Brief Summary

Review the sponsor-provided synopsis that highlights what the study is about and why it is being conducted.

In the present study, the effect of ear acupressure treatment according to the NADA protocol on the quality of life of patients with advanced tumour diseases. (all stages) will be investigated. Furthermore, the effect of ear acupressure on anxiety and depression, pain, fatigue and sleep of the patients will be assessed.

Detailed Description

Dive into the extended narrative that explains the scientific background, objectives, and procedures in greater depth.

Conditions

See the medical conditions and disease areas that this research is targeting or investigating.

Fatigue Pain Depression Advanced Tumour Diseases

Study Design

Understand how the trial is structured, including allocation methods, masking strategies, primary purpose, and other design elements.

Allocation Method

RANDOMIZED

Intervention Model

PARALLEL

Primary Study Purpose

TREATMENT

Blinding Strategy

SINGLE

Outcome Assessors

Study Groups

Review each arm or cohort in the study, along with the interventions and objectives associated with them.

Auricular Acupuncture

Intervention group: Ear acupressure is performed on both ears with permanent pellets according to the NADA (National Acupuncture Detoxification Association) protocol over a period of 8 weeks (presentation at the study center 1x/week, application of the acupressure patches there; these remain on both ears for 5 days and should be massaged 3x/day by the patients themselves according to the instructions provided).

In addition, patients receive a 30-minute psychoeducational talk at the first treatment appointment to promote their own health competence.

Group Type EXPERIMENTAL

Auricular Acupuncture

Intervention Type OTHER

Within the NADA protocol, 5 defined points on the patient's ears are treated according to a standardized concept (shen men, kidney, lung, liver, vegetative I).

Waitlist

Control group: standard treatment / waiting list Patients in the control group will also receive a one-time 30-minute psychoeducational interview at baseline.

Group Type NO_INTERVENTION

No interventions assigned to this group

Interventions

Learn about the drugs, procedures, or behavioral strategies being tested and how they are applied within this trial.

Auricular Acupuncture

Within the NADA protocol, 5 defined points on the patient's ears are treated according to a standardized concept (shen men, kidney, lung, liver, vegetative I).

Intervention Type OTHER

Eligibility Criteria

Check the participation requirements, including inclusion and exclusion rules, age limits, and whether healthy volunteers are accepted.

Inclusion Criteria

* Adult patients with advanced tumour diseases on current therapy, who suffer from persistent disease- or therapy-associated symptoms and limitations (screening by distress thermometer, score ≥ 5)
* Informed consent.

Exclusion Criteria

* medical reasons or
* a mental condition which, in the opinion of the investigator, does not allow the patient to participate in the study,
* a planned radiation therapy in the area of the skull (to avoid potential scattered radiation),
* a missing legally binding signature on the informed consent form,
* participation in another acupuncture/acupressure study.
Minimum Eligible Age

18 Years

Maximum Eligible Age

70 Years

Eligible Sex

ALL

Accepts Healthy Volunteers

No

Sponsors

Meet the organizations funding or collaborating on the study and learn about their roles.

Robert Bosch Gesellschaft für Medizinische Forschung mbH (RBMF)

OTHER

Sponsor Role collaborator

University Hospital Tuebingen

OTHER

Sponsor Role lead

Responsible Party

Identify the individual or organization who holds primary responsibility for the study information submitted to regulators.

Responsibility Role SPONSOR

Principal Investigators

Learn about the lead researchers overseeing the trial and their institutional affiliations.

Claudia Loeffler, Dr

Role: PRINCIPAL_INVESTIGATOR

University Hospital Wuerzburg

Locations

Explore where the study is taking place and check the recruitment status at each participating site.

Robert Bosch Krankenhaus

Stuttgart, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

University Hospital Wuerzburg

Würzburg, , Germany

Site Status RECRUITING

Countries

Review the countries where the study has at least one active or historical site.

Germany

Central Contacts

Reach out to these primary contacts for questions about participation or study logistics.

Claudia Loeffler, Dr

Role: CONTACT

+49 93120144966

Facility Contacts

Find local site contact details for specific facilities participating in the trial.

Marcela Winkler, MD

Role: primary

Claudia Loeffler, MD

Role: primary

Other Identifiers

Review additional registry numbers or institutional identifiers associated with this trial.

S00776

Identifier Type: -

Identifier Source: org_study_id

More Related Trials

Additional clinical trials that may be relevant based on similarity analysis.

Acupuncture for Post-Thoracotomy Pain
NCT00142532 COMPLETED PHASE3