Browse > Article
http://dx.doi.org/10.22246/jikm.2018.39.2.268

A Case Study of an Advanced Breast Cancer Patient Treated with a Combination of Traditional Korean Medicine and Chemotherapy  

Han, Ga-jin (Soram Korean Medicine Hospital)
Lee, A-ram (Soram Korean Medicine Hospital)
Seong, Sin (Soram Korean Medicine Hospital)
Kim, Sung-su (Soram Korean Medicine Hospital)
Publication Information
The Journal of Internal Korean Medicine / v.39, no.2, 2018 , pp. 268-276 More about this Journal
Abstract
Although patients with breast cancer receive standard treatments, they often experience recurrence or metastasis of tumors. Therefore, patients seeking treatment with traditional Korean medicine (TKM) in addition to conventional treatment have increased. We present a case of 46-year-old female with recurring breast cancer. She underwent surgeries and various hormone therapies since being diagnosed in 2007. Upon follow-up examination, she had metastatic lesions on the lung and multiple bones in 2015 and 2016. She received TKM treatments from May 2017 with Aromasin and Afinitor. However, hepatic metastasis was found after two months, so she started Capecitabine with TKM. After about two months, the liver nodules disappeared and a seeding nodule in the right paracolic gutter was decreased. After two months, the tumor response was stable disease. Back pain due to bone metastasis was improved. We suggest that combination treatment of TKM and chemotherapy is a promising method for treating breast cancer.
Keywords
breast neoplasm; medicine; Korean traditional; integrative medicine; case reports;
Citations & Related Records
Times Cited By KSCI : 4  (Citation Analysis)
연도 인용수 순위
1 Park B, Choi KS, Lee YY, Jun JK, Seo HG. Cancer screening status in Korea, 2011: results from the Korean National Cancer Screening Survey. Asian Pac J Cancer Prev 2012;13(4):1187-91.   DOI
2 Kang SH. Survival from the First Recurrence and the Prognostic Factors of Patients with Recurrent Breast Cancer. Ann Surg Treat Res 2007;73(3):210-5.
3 Yoon HS. Survival Analysis and Its Prognostic Factors after Distant Relapse in Breast Cancer Patients Purpose: Little attention has been paid to. Ann Surg Treat Res 2003;64(2):101-8.
4 Park JG, Bang YJ, Ha SW. Oncology. Seoul: Ichokak; 2012, p. 596.
5 Woo HD, Kim HS, Lee JH, Kim HM, Han SW, Kim SY, et al. Toxicity and Tolerability Study of Adjuvant TAC Regimen Chemotherapy in Korean Patients with Breast Cancer. J Breast Cancer 2011;14(S):S44-9.   DOI
6 Seo JY, Yi M. Distress and Quality of Life in Cancer Patients Receiving Chemotherapy. Asian Oncol Nurs 2015;15(1):18-27.   DOI
7 Lee NH, Lee KW, Yoo HS, Lee JS. A Preliminary Study for Development of Clinical Practice Guidelines of Korean Medicine in Breast Cancer. J Korean Obstet Gynecol 2016;29(2):47-65.   DOI
8 Kim JH, Bae KR, Park SJ, Cho CK, Yoo HS. A Case of Patient with Recurring Non-Small Cell Lung Carcinoma Treated with Samchilchoongcho-Jung in Conjunction with Afatinib. J Int Korean Med 2017;38(1):72-80.
9 Greenlee H, Balneaves LG, Carlson LE, Cohen M, Deng G, Hershman D. Clinical practice guidelines on the use of integrative therapies as supportive care in patients treated for breast cancer. J Natl Cancer Inst Monogr 2014;2014(50):346-58.   DOI
10 Li X, Yang G, Li X, Zhang Y, Yang J, Chang J, et al. Traditional Chinese medicine in cancer care: a review of controlled clinical studies published in chinese. PLoS One 2013;8(4):e60338.   DOI
11 Eisenhauer EA, Therasse P, Bogaerts J, Schwartz LH, Sargent D, Ford R. New response evaluation criteria in solid tumours: Revised RECIST guideline(version 1.1). Eur J Cancer 2009;45(2): 228-47.   DOI
12 National Cancer Institute. Common Terminology Criteria for Adverse Events(CTCAE) v.4.0, 2010. Available at http://evs.nci.nih.gov/ftp1/CTCAE/About.html)
13 Cho DI, Kim HS. The literature review for prescription of static blood. Daejeon University Korean Medicine Research Institute 1997;5(2) :265-79.
14 Park JA, Choi SH, Ahn GS, Moon DJ. A Study on the Effect of Samchilgeun(San qi gen) on Thrombosis and elevated Blood Viscosity. JPPKM 1992;7(1):15-26.
15 Jia WW, Bu X, Philips D, Yan H, Liu G, Chen X, et al. Rh2, a compound extracted from ginseng, hypersensitizes multidrug-resistant tumor cells to chemotherapy. Can J Physiol Pharmacol 2004;82(7):431-7.   DOI
16 Wang W, Zhang X, Qin JJ, Voruganti S, Nag SA, Wang MH, et al. Natural product ginsenoside 25-OCH3-PPD inhibits breast cancer growth and metastasis through down-regulating MDM2. PLoS One 2012;7(7):e41586.   DOI
17 Wang P, Cui J, Du X, Yang Q, Jia C, Xiong M, Yu, et al. Panax notoginseng saponins (PNS) inhibits breast cancer metastasis. J Ethnopharmacol 2014;154(3):663-71.   DOI
18 Bernard MM, McConnery JR, Hoskin DW. [10]-Gingerol, a major phenolic constituent of ginger root, induces cell cycle arrest and apoptosis in triple-negative breast cancer cells. Exp Mol Pathol 2017;102(2):370-6.   DOI
19 Jiang K, Lu Q, Li Q, Ji Y, Chen W, Xue X. Astragaloside IV inhibits breast cancer cell invasion by suppressing Vav3 mediated Rac1/MAPK signaling. Int Immunopharmacol 2017;42:195-202.   DOI
20 Bang SH, Kwon KR, Yoo HS. Two cases of Non-Small Lung Cancer Treated with Intravenous Cultivated Wild ginseng Pharmacopuncture. Journal of Phramacopuncture 2008;11(2):13-9.
21 Blum JL. The role of capecitabine, an oral, enzymatically activated fluoropyrimidine, in the treatment of metastatic breast cancer. Oncologist 2001;6(1):56-64.   DOI
22 Blum JL, Jones SE, Buzdar AU, LoRusso PM, Kuter I, Vogel C, et al. Multicenter phase II study of capecitabine in paclitaxel-refractory metastatic breast cancer. J Clin Oncol 1999; 17(2):485-93.   DOI
23 Han SA, Jang BH, Hwang DS, Suh HS. Experiences of Treatment-Related Side Effects and Supportive Care with Korean Medicine in Women with Breast Cancer - A Focus Group Study. J Korean Obstet Gynecol 2017;30(1): 85-94.   DOI