Now that you know a little about who I am, I hope you can see at least some wisdom in what I say.

I agree that the person that posted the question Should Not have been turned away, but a doctors note would be an invaluable asset to the massage therapist working on them, because it would have informed them what kind of cancer it was, were it was located and the risk of recurrence/relapse. Plus the fact that, although a non-invasive treatment, massage can in fact push back into the system cancer cells in cancer patients, The poison of chemo treatments for current or recent cancer patients, dead cells from chemo treatments causing a clot or other complications. I will admit that many of the medical professionals don’t know enough, or even very much about the effects of massage, HOWEVER, it isn’t a substitute for “traditional” western medicine.

Massage has many many benefits, and Can in fact help with several conditions that are currently diagnosed through medications/pills, there are several things that massage can worsen or be completely ineffective on. I have a personal belief that massage therapists, And MDs should work hand in hand, because as much as people would like to categorize them into different fields, it is all about healing.

Now to Tommy M.

AIDS are contraindicated in the instance that there is an open wound, or blood source on the skin. There are steps that Therapist can take to still work with an AIDS infected client, However, if you are such a candidate you should go to your Dr, MD, medical provider, and ask them to inform you about the positives of massage for this condition, and for the possible complications.

As for your mother, I hope you don’t feel I am over stepping boundaries with this particular subject, but I want to help as best I can with this. Your mother should be able, even entitled to a massage, there are step any massage would Have to take in order for her to experience the benefits, and certain areas, and techniques that they would have to avoid. Its simply a matter of finding the Right massage therapist to do so.

I will be writing articles on both these subjects on my own site shortly.
In actuality I wanted to hold off on this response until I had done so, but I felt that to much time had past since this subject started and I didn’t want any more time to go by in the fear that it would be to late to be helpful.

This is the first time I have read on your site, and I must say that your information is quite good. I would like to talk more about your views.

My mom was turned away for having lung cancer. People should educate themselves a bit more on this topic. I am going to stop in for a massage and advise the therapist that I have the AIDS virus and see what they do.

This is why our Country is failing. People who truly need help can’t get it!

My two cents.

Also, I find your dismissal of a physician’s note a little short-sighted. No, the average physician may not know what we do, but a well-trained massage therapist should know what sort information s/he should obtain from a patient’s physician. This dialogue can be a prime opportunity to educate the medical community on the effectiveness and necessity of massage as part of the health care field.

Thank you so much reading my blog and taking the time to comment.

You may want to read the post again more carefully and get the “full details.” The client says “…I have had cancer in the past.” S/he does not currently have cancer. There was no reason to turn him or her away.

Even for someone with cancer, I don’t know that a letter from a doctor would have much value. The letter would not provide any instruction for the therapist because doctors don’t know what therapists do. Also, a letter of this kind does not release the therapist from any liability. In fact such a letter may make things worse because the therapist may get a false sense of security and do something contraindicated. I would appreciate your insight on this.

And I agree, as I stated in the original post, that a massage therapist who works on someone who currently has cancer that they should adjust the session as necessary. But even if the therapist does not have the proper experience to make such adjustments, there is still nothing wrong with a light massage that is the equivalent of pressures that occur through the course of a normal day.

Given the prevalence of cancer in the US, this will continue to be an area of interest for massage therapists. Appropriate training should be included in all massage therapy curricula.