When Healing Begins to Show: Renewal After Chemotherapy

Kit Li

The year 2026 has only just begun, and it already fills me with excitement. Early this morning, I received some wonderful news from one of my patients who has been living with post-chemotherapy symptoms since her diagnosis of cancer several years ago. With great joy, she shared that her hair has finally begun to grow back after remaining absent since the start of her chemotherapy in 2023, something she had never imagined would happen.

My first encounter with Mrs. A occurred approximately five weeks ago. At that time, she appeared notably frail, delicate and vulnerable, reflecting her slow recovery and the cumulative side effects of her medications and chemotherapy. These included chronic fatigue, generalized weakness, peripheral neuropathy (1, 2) in hands and feet, oedema of the right leg, and persistent pain in the lower abdominal region. She confided that she had been experiencing profound depression since her diagnosis, describing the past few years as a nightmare that had left her overwhelmed by hopelessness.

Within six weeks, she has received four treatment sessions, and scheduled once a week. Remarkably, her response has been very positive, with significant and ongoing improvement.

Case Sharing:

Primary concerns: Chronic Fatigue, Sleeping Disorders, Hair Loss (3, 4) for over two years and Peripheral Neuropathy in hands and feet

Pulse: deep and weak generally

Tongue: very pale and thin coating

Pattern Differentiation:

• Qi and Blood deficiency: chronic fatigue, weakness, peripheral neuropathy
• Kidney-yang deficiency: cold extremities, poor circulation
• Heart-Blood deficiency: insomnia, disturbed Shen (Spirit)

Treatment Principles:

1. Warm and tonify Kidney Yang, support Essence
2. Tonify Qi and generate Blood
3. Nourish Heart-Blood, calm Shen
4. Promote circulation to channels

Acupoints: 

1. Key points on Ren-mai (任脉) with Dao-qi technique and particularly on ST-36 (足三里) (5) bilaterally...etc.
2. Body points: KI-1(涌泉), PC-6 (气海), SP-6 (三阴交), HT-3 (少海), HT-7 (神门).....etc.
3. Scalp Acupuncture: Key areas on Sensory Area, Spirit Emotions Area, Reproduction Area...etc.

 

By the third session, her Qi and Blood levels had clearly improved, shown by a stronger and more balanced pulse. She was able to walk more steadily with her walking stick. She had gained some weight, suggesting better digestion and overall nourishment. She appeared more relaxed, her mood was brighter, and her sleep and emotional state were more settled, the most exciting part was seeing her hair begin to grow.  During treatment, she became more open and comfortable talking, sharing her thoughts and feelings more easily.

Chinese Herbal Medicine (6, 7) will be prescribed to help support her immune system and to gently ease some of the side effects caused by chemotherapy. The treatment will be tailored to her condition and used alongside her existing medical care.

References:

1) A TCM Approach to Post-Chemotherapy Fatigue and Neuropathy: Clinical Observations and Patient Feedback: https://kitli-vitaqiholistic.blogspot.com/2025/11/managing-post-cancer-symptoms-with-tcm.html

2) Acupuncture for the Treatment of Peripheral Neuropathy: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis:https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC5359694/

3) Chemotherapy can trigger early menopause or thyroid dysfunction, both of which can cause ongoing hair loss long after treatment ends.

4) Can Acupuncture Help With Hair Loss? https://biologyinsights.com/can-acupuncture-help-with-hair-loss-2/

5) ST36 Acupuncture Point: The Ultimate Guide to Applications, Benefits and Research (2024): https://www.neuroacupuncturerehab.com/blog/st-36

6) How Chinese Herbal Medicine helps with cancer patients: https://kitli-vitaqiholistic.blogspot.com/2025/03/how-chinese-herbal-medicine-helps-with.html

7) Tailoring traditional Chinese medicine in cancer therapy: https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11749133/