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This bibliometric analysis examined the global landscape of research into non-pharmacological traditional Chinese medicine therapies — particularly acupuncture and mind-body exercises such as Tai Chi and Qigong — used in supportive care for people living with and beyond breast cancer. Drawing on data from Web of Science Core Collection and Scopus, the authors identified 1,761 documents published between 2000 and 2025, with publication numbers rising steeply from ten papers in 2000 to 171 in 2025, reflecting accelerating international interest.
The field showed a clear bipolar structure, with the United States leading in overall output, citations, and international collaboration, while China demonstrated rapid recent growth but comparatively limited cross-regional institutional partnerships. Acupuncture dominated the evidence base, with randomised controlled trials and clinical guidelines forming the core knowledge foundation. Over time, research priorities shifted from managing acute treatment side effects towards broader survivorship outcomes — including fatigue, vasomotor symptoms, anxiety, and sleep disturbance — and most recently towards evidence synthesis, implementation science, and understanding biological mechanisms.
The authors highlight a transition from viewing these approaches as complementary and alternative medicine towards their incorporation as integrative supportive care. They call for stronger international collaboration, harmonised outcome measures, and more mechanism- and cancer subtype-informed study designs to support wider clinical adoption.
Conclusion: This analysis confirms rapid and sustained global growth in traditional Chinese medicine supportive care research for breast cancer, identifying acupuncture and mind-body exercises as central therapies, whilst underscoring the need for standardisation and deeper international collaboration to advance clinical integration.
Source: Wang Q, Zhu Y, Feng H and colleagues. Frontiers in oncology (2026). View on PubMed (PMID 42358555) · doi:10.3389/fonc.2026.1805786