The efficacy and safety of acupuncture in cancer-related fatigue

INTERVENTION: The 40 eligible participants are randomly allocated to two different groups: 1. Participants in the intervention group will receive acupuncture therapy three times a week for 4 weeks 2. Participants in the control group will receive minimal acupuncture therapy three times a week for 4 weeks All the patients will complete some questionnaires at the start of the study and at fortnightly intervals to find out about any changes in fatigue level, sleep, appetite and emotion. They will be followed up for 1 month to assess long‐term effectiveness. CONDITION: Cancer‐related fatigue ; Cancer PRIMARY OUTCOME: Revised Piper Fatigue Scale‐Chinese Version (RPFS‐CV), a multidimensional assessment tool for measuring the level of fatigue subjectively for patients with cancer. It will be assessed before the treatment, at 2 and 4 weeks during the treatment, and 4 weeks after the treatment. SECONDARY OUTCOME: 1. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status (ECOG PS) .; 2. Pittsburgh Sleep Quality Index (PSQI); 3. Simplified Nutritional Appetite Questionnaire (SNAQ); 4. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS); 5. TCM symptoms scale; The outcome measures above will be assessed before the treatment, at 2 and 4 weeks during the treatment, and 4 weeks after the treatment. INCLUSION CRITERIA: 1. Women patients with a definite pathologic diagnosis of breast cancer who had complete chemotherapy and/or radiotherapy at least 1 month before and mastectomy within 5 years 2. Stage I‐III breast cancer with no evidence of recurrence and metastasis 3. Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group (ECOG) performance status 0‐2 4. Anticipated survival time is more than 6 months 5. Aged 18‐65 6. Patients who are suffering from at least moderate fatigue by Revised Piper Fatigue Scale‐Chinese Version (RPFS‐CV) 7. All patients provided written informed consent before enrollment