Opinion: Cancer Health Care - A Modern Chinese Medicine Perspective

Symbiosis Group * Corresponding author email: [email protected] Cancer is an age-related degenerative disease and even though it is a modern threat to our health, its origins are ancient. The earliest evidence of cancer cells were found in dinosaur fossils 80 million years ago [1]. Cancer has been studied very early in Chinese Medicine; cancer was described as 瘤 (liú) back to the Yin duration of the late Shang Dynasty (1300-1046BC) on oracle bones inscriptions [2]. During the Warring States period (475221BC), the fundamental doctrinal source of Chinese Medicine, the “Huang Di Nei Jing”, classified the types of cancer. These were 昔瘤 (xī liú) or chronic tumour, 筋瘤(jīn liú) or sinew tumour, 瘤(chánɡ liú) or intestinal tumour, 石瘕(shí xiá) or rock tumour, 聚(jī jù) or accumulation, 噎嗝(yē ɡé) or oesophageal tumour, etc [3]. In another canon, the “Nan Jing”, written in the same period, the differences between (jī) “accumulation” and 聚 (jù) “gathering” were discussed in relation to the bowels and viscera, its diseases, symptoms and pathogenesis [4]. Renowned Chinese Medical Doctor Hua Tuo from the Eastern Han Dynasty (5220AD) pioneered surgery for tumour removals with anaesthesia [2]. However not all tumors detected on screening led to clinical symptoms and according to an article from New England Journal of Medicine, 31% of patients detected with breast cancers were asymptomatic [5]. From Chinese Medicine, this can be explained because cancer is related to our 正气 (zhènɡqì) or Immunity Qi. Chinese Medicine focuses on the person rather than the disease itself. This is because Chinese Medicine believes that immunity Qi is what enables our bodies to defend itself from 邪气 (xiéqì) or Pathological Qi, which includes cancers. This is why some people with cancer can live long, because their Immunity Qi is stronger than the Pathological Qi, else if the Pathogenic Qi is stronger, the cancer will manifest and lead to death. Therefore Chinese Medicine aims to support Immunity Qi and dispel Pathogenic Qi. Immunity Qi is composed of the body’s Jīnɡ (精), Qì (气) and Shén (神). Jīng are the foundational nutritional substances, Qì is an unceasing and moving profound substance that possesses a powerful vital force. Jīnɡ and Qì constitute Shén, which is a high level conceptualisation of life’s motility manifested by the Heart. In this context, the Heart refers to the mind. The Chinese Medical 脏腑 (zàngfǔ) or internal organ understanding is the backbone of all theories, it identifies the major organs such as the Heart, Liver, Spleen, etc. as part of a system associated with functions of 肠