Abstract
BACKGROUND: Chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (CIPN) is one of the commonly reported symptoms impacting cancer survivors. This study evaluated and compared the effectiveness of acupuncture treatments for CIPN. METHODS: We searched six databases from their inception to August 2024 to identify eligible randomized controlled trials (RCTs). Primary outcome were pain scores. Secondary outcomes were quality of life including FACT/GOG-Ntx and EORTC QLQ-C30. The robust error meta-regression (REMR) method was used to evaluate the dose-response relationship across treatment parameters, including number of sessions, frequency, and duration. RESULTS: In total, 11 RCTs featuring 740 participants were included. The meta-analysis demonstrated that the primary analysis achieved a significant reduction in pain scores, with a standardized mean difference of [SMD= -1.23, 95% CI = (-2.22, -0.24); P < 0.01; I² = 95%], improvement quality of life including FACT/GOG-Ntx [SMD = 0.95, 95% CI = (0.02, 1.88); P < 0.01; I² = 93%] and EORTC QLQ-C30 [SMD = 0.36, 95% CI = (0.03, 0.68); P = 0.14; I² = 46%]. The nonlinear dose-response analysis suggests that pain improvement achieves the MCID at 16 treatment sessions, over 8 weeks, with a frequency of twice per week. Furthermore, analysis of the treatment duration chart shows that acupuncture maintains therapeutic effects during the follow-up period. Sensitivity analysis confirmed the robustness of these findings. CONCLUSION: Acupuncture demonstrates significant potential in managing CIPN, particularly through individualized treatment regimens. The identified time-dose-response relationship suggests that tailoring acupuncture frequency and duration can to optimize pain relief in CIPN patients. Future high-quality studies and large-scale multicenter clinical trials are needed to validate these findings.