TCM Syndrome Differentiation and Treatment of Pancreatic Cancer

Pancreatic cancer is often classified as "accumulation" or "jaundice" in TCM. Traditional Chinese medicine believes that liver qi stagnation and poor qi movement will cause abdominal pain, discomfort in the epigastric region, and distension; liver qi attacks the spleen, and spleen qi is weak, so there will be loss of appetite, weight loss, fatigue, and diarrhea; spleen deficiency produces dampness, dampness stagnation turns into heat, and heat toxicity accumulates inside, which will cause jaundice. If the course of the disease is prolonged, qi stagnation and blood stasis, and heat toxicity accumulates inside, abdominal masses will appear. The TCM syndrome differentiation and treatment methods for pancreatic cancer are as follows:

1. Damp-heat stagnation syndrome

[Main symptoms] Abdominal distension and pain, bitter taste in the mouth and poor appetite, yellow body and eyes, constipation or loose stools, short and dark urine, weight loss, fever, red tongue with yellow and greasy tongue coating, and slippery and rapid or soft pulse.

【Treatment method】 Clear away heat and dampness, promote bile secretion and detoxify.

[Prescription] Yinchenhao Decoction (Treatise on Febrile Diseases) with modifications. For severe abdominal pain, add Chuanlianzi, Yuanhu, and Curcuma; for severe nausea and vomiting, add Zhuru, Pinellia, and Tangerine Peel; for severe fever, add Isatis Root and Talc; for loose stools, reduce the amount of raw rhubarb by half, or use cooked rhubarb instead.

[Fenqi] Yinchenhao Decoction is a representative prescription for treating damp-heat jaundice. The non-toxic anti-cancer green therapy has modified this prescription to make it have the effects of clearing away heat and dampness, promoting bile secretion and relieving jaundice, and detoxifying and fighting cancer.

2. Qi and blood stasis syndrome

[Main symptoms] Continuous pain in the upper abdomen, often involving the waist and back, severe pain when lying flat, relieved by bending forward or bending legs; chest and abdominal distension, nausea

[Treatment method] Promote qi and blood circulation, resolve blood stasis and soften hard masses.

【Prescription】 Gexia Zhuyu Decoction (Medical Error Correction) with modifications. For patients with jaundice, add Artemisia capillaris, Scutellaria baicalensis, and Polygonum cuspidatum; for patients with severe chest and abdominal distension, add Trichosanthes root, Aucklandia lappa, and Radix Angelicae Dahuricae; for patients with severe pain, add Tripterygium wilfordii, Atractylodes macrocephala, and Pollen Typhae; for patients with loss of appetite, add Chicken Gizzard Stone and stir-fried malt sprouts; for patients with gastrointestinal bleeding, add Agrimonia sinensis; for patients with constipation, add Rhubarb.

[Analysis] Traditional Chinese medicine believes that "pain occurs when there is obstruction" and abdominal pain is the result of blockage of Qi and blood, and stagnation of evil Qi. Therefore, we should promote Qi and blood circulation, dredge the meridians, and eliminate evil and detoxify.

3. Yin deficiency and heat toxicity syndrome

[Main symptoms] Persistent low-grade fever, weight loss, fatigue, dry mouth, irritability and insomnia, poor appetite, dull abdominal pain, dry stool, yellow urine, or ascites, bright red, tender red, or dark red tongue with little fluid, little or light tongue coating, and stringy, thin, rapid, or weak pulse.

[Treatment method] Nourish yin and produce body fluid, clear fire and detoxify.

[Prescription] Yi Guan Jian with modifications (Liuzhou Medical Talk). For patients with qi deficiency, add Astragalus; for obvious blood stasis, add Salvia miltiorrhiza and Curcuma zedoaria; for abdominal distension, add Rhizoma Atractylodis Macrocephalae and processed Cyperus rotundus; for patients with more ascites, add Rhizoma Alismatis and Verbena officinalis.

[Analysis] Yi Guan Jian is a commonly used prescription for replenishing the yin of the liver and kidneys. The non-toxic anti-cancer green therapy has modified this prescription to make it have the effects of nourishing yin and replenishing qi, promoting fluid production and benefiting the lungs and kidneys, detoxifying and promoting qi circulation, soothing the liver and moistening the intestines, and aiding digestion.

4. Qi deficiency and dampness obstruction syndrome

[Main symptoms] Fatigue and weight loss, yellow body and eyes, dark complexion, abdominal distension, nausea and vomiting, upper abdominal pain, loose stools, lower limb edema or ascites, a mass can be felt in the abdomen, pale red tongue or with teeth marks, greasy tongue coating, and a thready and moist pulse.

【Treatment method】Invigorate Qi and eliminate dampness, strengthen the spleen and soften hard masses.

[Prescription] Wuling Powder with modifications (Treatise on Febrile Diseases). For patients with obvious physical weakness and anemia, add ginseng, cooked rehmannia, and placenta; for patients with obvious ascites, add plantain seeds and black radix scutellariae; for patients with poor appetite, add chicken gizzard lining and stir-fried barley sprouts; for patients with loose stools, add Euryale ferox.

[Analysis] This syndrome is more common in patients with advanced pancreatic cancer or metastasis after surgery. In addition to patients with Yin deficiency, patients with advanced pancreatic cancer also often suffer from Yang deficiency, or jaundice for a long time, cold and dampness cannot be transformed, and dampness, toxicity and Yin evil accumulate. At this time, warming and transforming cold and dampness, strengthening the spleen and replenishing Qi, and detoxification and softening are the treatments.

Traditional Chinese medicine treatment emphasizes syndrome differentiation and treatment. The specific conditions of each patient are different. Patients should not take medicine indiscriminately after reading articles on the Internet. They should take medicine under the guidance of a doctor after syndrome differentiation and treatment, so as not to delay the disease or even cause more serious consequences.