The Benefits of Touch Therapy for Cancer

  Potent treatments often come with potent side effects. Integrative therapies can support the mind, body, and spirit during cancer care and recovery. by Suzy Frisch 

​When someone is diagnosed with cancer, they go through a barrage of treatments to eliminate or help curb the disease. These powerful therapies often do a number on the cancer. But they also leave behind a trail of symptoms and side effects that linger, causing their own brand of suffering. Amid traditional medical care, many people are turning to integrative therapies for relief, support, and healing. A growing body of research shows that massage therapy particularly helps with the physical and emotional impact of having cancer, says Spring Saldana, a board-certified massage therapist and massage therapy program chair at Northwestern Health Sciences University in Bloomington. Saldana can personally and professionally attest to the benefits of oncology massage. She experienced them while being treated for breast cancer and during her recovery. “When you go through something like that, you feel very alone, even when you have support,” says Saldana, a three-year survivor. “Being able to be touched, with care, in the safe space that was provided—it did a world of good for me.” Since Saldana trained more than 15 years ago, there’s been a shift in the thinking about massage for people who have cancer or are recovering. Then, massage was believed to be too dangerous because it could potentially spread cancer around the body. Research does not support that theory, instead finding that massage can be beneficial. However, Saldana says, it is important to see a massage therapist who has trained extensively in oncology massage therapy. “There are a lot of people who go through this journey alone, and they don’t have to. Forming a relationship with a massage therapist who knows what they're doing with this population would make their journey easier. It would definitely make you feel like your hand is being held through it.” Spring Saldana, Northwestern Health Sciences University Here, just a handful of ways that massage can help people with cancer cope: Pain Cancer patients experience all manner of pain stemming from surgery, chemotherapy infusions, radiation, or other medications. It’s one of the most common and debilitating symptoms they face. But massage can reduce the intensity and severity of pain, according to the American Massage Therapy Association. Anxiety and Depression It’s common for people with cancer to have significant anxiety and depression while confronting many unknowns, both during and after treatment. Massage boosts dopamine and serotonin levels, calming the nervous system through touch, Saldana says. Appetite When going through chemotherapy, many people lose their appetites and experience nausea, constipation, or other digestive problems. Light abdominal massage often can restore order. Fatigue Sleep is key to healing, and massage certainly helps with promoting relaxation and rest. Lymphedema Massage also addresses lymphedema, a common side effect for people with breast cancer especially. If surgeons remove lymph nodes, excess fluid often builds up and causes painful swelling in the arms and legs. Massage can assist with draining that fluid.  When an oncology massage therapist does body work, it’s different than a regular massage. These therapists have trained extensively in what cancer and treatments do to the body, mind, and spirit. They use different techniques depending on the individual’s experience and needs. Some people can handle a normal touch and frequent massages. Others can tolerate just a light, short massage, perhaps focused on the hands and feet. When even that is too much, some people benefit from Reiki, a form of energy healing that involves a gentle touch or a laying of hands, Saldana says. Experiencing cancer can be traumatic, and massage helps people release some of that stress and trauma stored in the body. Saldana recommends that cancer patients try massage or healing work during their treatment so that they can release some of that pain along the way. “There are a lot of people who go through this journey alone, and they don’t have to,” she adds. “Forming a therapeutic relationship with a massage therapist who knows what they are doing with this population would make their journey easier. It would definitely make you feel like your hand is being held through it.”
Located in Bloomington, Northwestern Health Sciences University is a pioneer in integrative natural health care education, offering degree programs in chiropractic, acupuncture, Chinese medicine, massage therapy, medical assisting, medical laboratory programs, post-bac/pre-health, radiation therapy, and B.S. completion. Its Bloomington clinic is open to the public, and provides chiropractic treatment, acupuncture, Chinese medicine, massage therapy, naturopathic medicine, cupping, and physical therapy.