Green Therapy for Insomnia in Cancer Patients: Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS)

Green Therapy for Insomnia in Cancer Patients: Repetitive Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (rTMS)

First, Let's see what the patients themselves have to say?

Second, why do cancer patients suffer from insomnia?

• Impact of the tumor disease itself.
• Side effects of treatment.
• Stress and overthinking.
• Accompanying anxiety and depressive emotions.
• Traumatic stress reactions.
• Fear related to disease diagnosis, prognosis, treatment process, recurrence, and death.

The last point is often the core reason for difficulty falling asleep. The combined effects of these multiple factors lead to what is medically termed "cancer-related insomnia." As one patient expressed, "I am not only battling the torment of cancer and its treatment, but even sleep has to be 'granted' by medication."

Third, are there any green treatment methods with no side effects?

Transcranial Magnetic Stimulation (TMS) is a painless, non-invasive brain modulation technique. It delivers magnetic pulses through the scalp to precisely target brain regions associated with emotion and sleep, regulating neural activity and helping to restore balance in the brain.

Forth, how does transcranial magnetic stimulation help with insomnia in tumor patients?

1. Improves Sleep: Enhances sleep quality, extends sleep duration, and reduces nighttime awakenings.  

2. Alleviates Emotional Distress: While improving sleep, it also helps reduce anxiety and depressive symptoms.  

3. Non-Pharmacological Treatment: As a physical therapy, it avoids concerns related to medication dependency and daytime drowsiness.  

4. Supports Anti-Tumor Treatment: A stable psychological state and good sleep help maintain immune system function, mitigate the negative effects of long-term stress and anxiety on the endocrine and neuroimmune networks, improve patients' tolerance and adherence to primary treatments like radiotherapy and chemotherapy, and assist patients in better completing their treatment plans.

Fifth, what is the treatment process like?

1. Professional Evaluation: Determination of suitability by a specialist physician.  

2. Precision Localization: Personalized identification of the treatment target area.  

3. Session Duration of 20–40 Minutes: Typically requires multiple treatment sessions.  

4. Minimal Sensation of Pain: Only a mild tapping feeling is experienced.

Simple and Secure

Important reminder: If you are concerned about the side effects of medications, repetitive transcranial magnetic therapy is a green choice to eliminate "sleep disorders" on your journey to fight cancer.

Department of Gastroenterology \ Department of Oncology Rehabilitation

The Gastroenterology/Tumor Rehabilitation Department of the Lanzhou Heavy Ion Center is a specialized unit of our center, integrating medical care, teaching, and research. It comprises two outpatient clinics for gastroenterology and tumor rehabilitation, along with one inpatient ward. The department currently has 13 medical staff members, including one with a senior professional title, two with intermediate titles, and ten with junior titles. Among them, one holds a doctoral degree, and five hold master’s degrees. Additionally, four provincial-level renowned traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) practitioners provide long-term consultations. The team includes clinical physicians, TCM practitioners, rehabilitation therapists, psychological counselors, psychotherapists, health managers, and nutritionists, all of whom have received training in specialized rehabilitation techniques, TCM meridian hypnosis, mindfulness-based stress reduction therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, psychological drawing analysis, and more. The department is dedicated to the diagnosis and treatment of digestive system diseases, as well as integrated rehabilitation approaches combining traditional Chinese and Western medicine. This includes physical rehabilitation, exercise rehabilitation, psychological rehabilitation, and nutritional rehabilitation. Operating under a multidisciplinary team (MDT) model, the department develops tailored diagnosis, treatment, and rehabilitation plans for patients.

1. Scope of Diagnosis and Treatment

• Digestive System: Includes esophageal diseases, gastrointestinal disorders, hepatobiliary and pancreatic conditions, psychosomatic digestive diseases, palliative care for gastrointestinal tumors, and traditional Chinese medicine treatments.  
• Comprehensive Rehabilitation: Covers lumbar disc herniation, cervical spondylosis, degenerative osteoarthritis, muscle atrophy, peripheral nerve injuries; as well as tumor-related complications and adverse reactions from non-surgical cancer treatments, such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, abdominal pain, fatigue, skin damage, bone marrow suppression, hair loss, and lymphedema.

2. Diagnosis and Treatment Technologies

• Routine Diagnosis and Treatment:  

  - Painless gastrointestinal endoscopy techniques.  

  - Endoscopic treatments, including minimally invasive procedures such as polypectomy, hemostasis, stricture dilation, stent placement, endoscopic mucosal resection (EMR), and endoscopic submucosal dissection (ESD).  

• Specialized Diagnosis and Treatment:

  - Advanced endoscopic techniques such as peroral endoscopic myotomy (POEM), endoscopic ultrasound (EUS), EUS-guided radioactive seed implantation, endoscopic retrograde cholangiopancreatography (ERCP), combined endoscopic and laparoscopic full-thickness resection of the gastrointestinal wall, and sclerotherapy or band ligation for esophageal and gastric varices.  

  - Integrated traditional Chinese and Western medicine for managing gastrointestinal side effects of tumor radiotherapy and chemotherapy, particularly radiation proctitis.  

  - Combination of physical therapy, cognitive behavioral therapy, and mindfulness-based stress reduction for anxiety, depression, and insomnia.  

  - Integrated traditional Chinese medicine and psychotherapy for cancer-related fatigue and side effects of tumor radiotherapy and chemotherapy.  

  - Prevention and treatment of lymphedema following tumor radiotherapy.  

  - Traditional Chinese medicine treatment for chemotherapy-induced hand-foot syndrome.  

  - Comprehensive rehabilitation for cancer-related pain and various chronic pain conditions.

3. Department Equipment and Facilities

• Advanced Endoscopic Equipment: Includes Olympus high-definition electronic gastroscopes, electronic duodenoscopes, electronic colonoscopes, endoscopic ultrasound systems, magnifying endoscopes, and small bowel endoscopes.  
• State-of-the-Art Rehabilitation Devices: Features fully automatic constant-temperature wax therapy machines, Wira light therapy devices, interferential current therapy units, deep muscle stimulators, shockwave therapy machines, ultrasound therapy devices, lymphatic therapy systems, air compression therapy units, medium-frequency therapy devices, low-frequency therapy devices, transcranial magnetic stimulators, psychological CT scanners, mental stress analyzers, computerized mindfulness training systems, psychological sandplay tools, and polysomnography monitors.

Department Service Philosophy:

Leverage medical excellence to alleviate suffering; enhance quality of life through humanistic care.  

Outpatient Address:

Room 418, 4th Floor, Inpatient Building, Lanzhou Heavy Ion Center, Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital  

Inpatient Department Address:  

10th Floor, Inpatient Building, Lanzhou Heavy Ion Center, Gansu Wuwei Cancer Hospital