Live Well 8: Acupuncture

On the first floor of Rochester General Hospital's Lipson Cancer Center, patients can find Shannon Pinckney in a small corner office.

Her services are unique to the center. She's a licensed acupuncturist. RGH hired her earlier this year to treat patients in the same building where they're receiving cancer treatments.

"Reliably, we can treat a person with certain points and their nausea will diminish," said Pinckney. "We can treat a person with certain points for certain pain issues and that will diminish."

Patients can go through chemotherapy at the same time she's doing acupuncture or soon after. With these little needles, Pinckney says she balances the body's energy. In four to six visits, she says it can help ease the side-effects of cancer treatment.

"I have more energy now I feel and my body is just changing a bit I believe," said Jacqueline Bowman, a patient whose cancer is in remission. She started acupuncture treatments to boost her energy and relieve indigestion. After four visits, she says she believes it's working.

"You can't come here thinking it's hocus pocus," said Jacqueline. "You have to believe in it, and I do think she can help me."

Pinckney says some patients' bodies don't respond to acupuncture treatments, but for patients like Bowman, she says it can be life changing.

"It's huge because patients here are going through a major life crisis," said Pinckney. "We found that if we can improve their quality of life, their immune function comes up."