An interventional study of True electroacupuncture and True thumbtack needle in Electroacupuncture, Chemotherapy and Peripheral Neuropathy, sponsored by Affiliated Hospital of Qinghai University. Not yet recruiting at 1 site in China. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2026-06-23.
Sponsored by Affiliated Hospital of Qinghai University · Not applicable, Interventional, and Treatment
This randomized controlled clinical trial aims to clarify the clinical efficacy and safety of electroacupuncture combined with thumbtack needle for the prevention of chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy(CIPN), and to provide high-level evidence-based medicine for the prevention of CIPN in patients with early stage cancer. At the same time, the effects of electroacupuncture on the median nerve, tibial nerve, sural nerve sensory conduction velocity and sensory nerve action potential, as well as on the median nerve and tibial nerve motor conduction velocity will be analyzed.
A prospective, multicenter, block-randomized, blinded study design will be adopted. The study will screen patients with early stage breast cancer, gastric cancer, intestinal cancer, non-small cell lung cancer, and ovarian cancer who are receiving chemotherapy. Eligible participants will be randomly assigned in a 1:1 ratio, through a screening and informed consent process, to either the experimental group or the control group. The experimental group will receive electroacupuncture combined with thumbtack needle treatment, while the control group will receive sham electroacupuncture combined with sham thumbtack needle treatment. The primary endpoint will be the incidence of CIPN during chemotherapy(assessed by NCI-CTCAE). Secondary endpoints will include: the incidence of CIPN at 3, 6, and 9 months after the start of chemotherapy; the incidence of ≥ grade 3 sensory CIPN within 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy; and the incidence of ≥ grade 2 sensory CIPN within 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy. Simultaneously evaluate the safety of treatment and the quality of life of patients. Changes in nerve conduction velocity will be detected before the first cycle of chemotherapy and after the fourth cycle of chemotherapy.
476 studies on the registry are indexed under Peripheral Nervous System Diseases; 103 are open to participants now.
This study's planned enrollment of 278 is above the median of 57 across 359 interventional studies indexed under Peripheral Nervous System Diseases.
Browse Peripheral Nervous System Diseases studies →Affiliated Hospital of Qinghai University is the lead sponsor of 18 studies on the registry; 5 are open to participants now.
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Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.
Exclusion Criteria:
Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
A scale of how much an illness limits everyday activity. For people being assessed to join a study, scores run from 0 (fully active) to 4; lower is more active.
Studies most often ask for 0–1 or 0–2. Your doctor gives the score; the WHO scale uses the same steps. The full scale also has 5, which records death.
The number of neutrophils, white blood cells that help fight infection, in a given amount of blood. Too few raises the risk of infection.
It is a count, not a percentage of the white cells. Limits are written in units that mean the same: ≥ 1.5 × 10⁹/L is ≥ 1,500 per mm³ (µL). Each lab has its own reference range.
Blood cells that help blood clot. Too few raises the risk of bleeding and bruising. A usual adult range is about 150–400 × 10⁹/L (150,000–400,000 per µL); each lab has its own reference range.
The protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen. A low level is anaemia, which can cause tiredness and breathlessness. Measured in g/dL or g/L (9 g/dL is 90 g/L).
A yellow substance made when red blood cells are broken down, which the liver clears. A high level can mean a problem with the liver or the bile ducts.
Criteria often allow more for people with Gilbert’s syndrome, a harmless inherited condition that raises bilirubin.
The top of the normal range for a blood test, as set by the laboratory that runs it. Each lab prints its own range next to your result.
“≤ 2.5 × ULN” means the result can be up to two and a half times that top value.
Two enzymes measured in a routine blood test of the liver. Higher levels can mean the liver is under strain or damaged. SGPT and SGOT are older names for ALT and AST.
Criteria usually give a limit as a multiple of the upper limit of normal (ULN), often higher when cancer has spread to the liver.
How quickly the kidneys clear creatinine, a waste product, from the blood. A study may estimate it from a blood test with age, weight and sex (often by the Cockcroft–Gault formula), or measure it using blood and urine collected over a set time. Given in mL/min; higher is better.
Blood tests of how long blood takes to clot. The INR is the prothrombin time (PT) put on a common scale; about 1 is usual for someone not taking a blood thinner.
Criteria often make an exception for people on a blood thinner such as warfarin, whose INR is raised on purpose.
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Cancer deposits in the brain from a cancer that started elsewhere in the body (CNS metastases include the spinal cord).
Studies differ: some leave out any brain metastases, some accept ones treated and stable for some weeks. Check what this study allows.
ECOG performance status
A scale of how much an illness limits everyday activity. For people being assessed to join a study, scores run from 0 (fully active) to 4; lower is more active.
Studies most often ask for 0–1 or 0–2. Your doctor gives the score; the WHO scale uses the same steps. The full scale also has 5, which records death.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Absolute neutrophil count (ANC)
The number of neutrophils, white blood cells that help fight infection, in a given amount of blood. Too few raises the risk of infection.
It is a count, not a percentage of the white cells. Limits are written in units that mean the same: ≥ 1.5 × 10⁹/L is ≥ 1,500 per mm³ (µL). Each lab has its own reference range.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Platelets
Blood cells that help blood clot. Too few raises the risk of bleeding and bruising. A usual adult range is about 150–400 × 10⁹/L (150,000–400,000 per µL); each lab has its own reference range.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Hemoglobin (Hb)
The protein in red blood cells that carries oxygen. A low level is anaemia, which can cause tiredness and breathlessness. Measured in g/dL or g/L (9 g/dL is 90 g/L).
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Bilirubin
A yellow substance made when red blood cells are broken down, which the liver clears. A high level can mean a problem with the liver or the bile ducts.
Criteria often allow more for people with Gilbert’s syndrome, a harmless inherited condition that raises bilirubin.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
ULN (upper limit of normal)
The top of the normal range for a blood test, as set by the laboratory that runs it. Each lab prints its own range next to your result.
“≤ 2.5 × ULN” means the result can be up to two and a half times that top value.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
ALT and AST (liver enzymes)
Two enzymes measured in a routine blood test of the liver. Higher levels can mean the liver is under strain or damaged. SGPT and SGOT are older names for ALT and AST.
Criteria usually give a limit as a multiple of the upper limit of normal (ULN), often higher when cancer has spread to the liver.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Creatinine clearance (CrCl)
How quickly the kidneys clear creatinine, a waste product, from the blood. A study may estimate it from a blood test with age, weight and sex (often by the Cockcroft–Gault formula), or measure it using blood and urine collected over a set time. Given in mL/min; higher is better.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
INR, PT and aPTT (clotting tests)
Blood tests of how long blood takes to clot. The INR is the prothrombin time (PT) put on a common scale; about 1 is usual for someone not taking a blood thinner.
Criteria often make an exception for people on a blood thinner such as warfarin, whose INR is raised on purpose.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Informed consent
Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.
You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Brain metastases
Cancer deposits in the brain from a cancer that started elsewhere in the body (CNS metastases include the spinal cord).
Studies differ: some leave out any brain metastases, some accept ones treated and stable for some weeks. Check what this study allows.
Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.
Electroacupuncture will be administered on days 1, 2 and 3 of chemotherapy, followed by thumbtack needle therapy on days 4, 5, and 6 of chemotherapy, and no intervention will be given at other times. For electroacupuncture, we will choose the following acupoints: Zusanli, Hegu, Taichong, Quchi, and Yanglingquan. After achieving 'deqi', electrodes will be connected bilaterally as follows: Quchi to Yanglingquan, and Hegu to Zusanli. Stimulation will be delivered at 2/10Hz with a current of ≤10mA for 30 minutes. For thumbtack needle therapy, bilateral Zusanli, Hegu, and Taichong points will be sterilized with 75% alcohol before inserting and embedding the thumbtack needles. On the day of thumbtack needle therapy, patients will be instructed to press each thumbtack for one minute at 9:00, 13:00, and 17:00, to induce a mild sensation of soreness and fullness. The electroacupuncture and thumbtack needle therapy will be given for each chemotherapy cycle.
Device: True electroacupuncture · Device: True thumbtack needle
Sham electroacupuncture will be administered on days 1, 2, and 3 of chemotherapy, followed by sham thumbtack needle therapy on days 4, 5, and 6 of chemotherapy, and no intervention will be given at other times. Sham electroacupuncture operation: Select the same acupoints as the experimental group, select 1-2cm near the Zusanli, Hegu, Taichong, Quchi, and Yanglingquan acupoints, shallow subcutaneous puncture, no electricity, 30 minutes. Sham thumbtack needle operation: Select 1-2cm near the Zusanli, Hegu, and Taichong acupoints on both sides to apply fake snap needles(remove the needle tip) without pressing. The same sham electroacupuncture and sham thumbtack needle therapy will be given for each chemotherapy cycle.
Device: Sham electroacupuncture · Device: Sham thumbtack needle
The acupoints Zusanli, Hegu, Taichong, Quchi, and Yanglingquan will be selected for treatment. After inserting the needle with a 'deqi', electrodes will be connected bilaterally as follows: Quchi to Yanglingquan, and Hegu to Zusanli. The electroacupuncture parameters adopt a sparse wave type, with a frequency of 2/10Hz and a current intensity not exceeding 10mA. The treatment time is 30 minutes, based on the patient's tolerance.
The Zusanli, Hegu, and Taichong on both sides will be selected for thumbtack needle therapy, clean the skin with a 75% alcohol cotton swab, and quickly insert the thumbtack needle into the skin and into the selected acupoints. At 9:00, 13:00, 17:00, and 21:00, patients will be instructed to press each acupoint for one minute, with pressure adjusted to a tolerable level of mild pain or achin. If fainting or skin allergies occur during the thumbtack needle therapy, the thumbtack needle will be promptly removed.
Select Zusanli, Hegu, Taichong, Quchi, and Yanglingquan on both sides will be selected for sham electroacupuncture therapy, select 1-2cm near the Zusanli, Hegu, Taichong, Quchi, and Yanglingquan acupoints, shallow subcutaneous puncture, no electricity, 30 minutes.
Select Zusanli, Hegu, and Taichong on both sides will be selected for sham thumbtack needle therapy. Select 1-2cm near the Zusanli, Hegu, and Taichong acupoints on both sides and apply sham thumbtack needle (remove the needle tip) without pressing.
The incidence of CIPN during chemotherapy (from the beginning of chemotherapy to the end of chemotherapy for any reason) .
The number of cases of CIPN occurring during chemotherapy/Total number of cases
Time frame: 1 year
The incidence of CIPN at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy
Number of CIPN cases at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy/Total number of cases
Time frame: 1 year
The incidence of ≥ grade 3 sensory CIPN at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy
Number of cases of ≥ grade 3 sensory CIPN occurring at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy/Total number of cases
Time frame: 1 year
The incidence of ≥ grade 2 sensory CIPN at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy
Number of cases of ≥ grade 2 sensory CIPN occurring at 3, 6, 9, and 12 months after the start of chemotherapy/Total number of cases
Time frame: 1 year
The time of occurrence of all levels and levels 3 and above CIPN
The time of occurrence of all levels and levels 3 and above CIPN
Time frame: 1 year
EORTC-CIPN20 evaluation score
The scale consists of 20 questions, each divided into 4 levels: 1 point: completely none, 2 points: a little, 3 points: quite a lot, 4 points: very much. The total score is converted into a standard rating score (0-100 points) through linear conversion.
Time frame: 1 year
EQ-5D-5L evaluation score
For the Descriptive System(Health State Index): A single summary index value(often called a 'utility' score) is calculated by applying a country-specific or region-specific value set(or 'tariff') to the 5-digit health state code. These value sets, derived from general population studies, assign weights to each possible health state. The index typically ranges from values less than 0(where 0=dead, and states worse than dead have negative values) to 1(full health). There is no single global scoring formula; the appropriate national value set must be used. For the EQ VAS: The score is the self-reported number between 0 and 100, representing the respondent's perception of their overall health at that moment. It is reported as a raw score.
Time frame: 1 year
Plan to share: Undecided
No publications or documents are linked to this record.
Start is estimated for May 2026; primary completion for May 2029, 36 months later.
Of 122 non-industry interventional studies with no phase under Peripheral Nervous System Diseases, half reached primary completion within 25 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 12 and three quarters within 43. This study's planned 36 months is above that.
Counting every sponsor, half of 132 studies reached it within 25 months; a quarter within 12 and three quarters within 43.
How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.
This study is not yet recruiting, as verified in May 2026. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.
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Peripheral Nervous System Diseases →
Affiliated Hospital of Qinghai University