For Massage Therapists wanting to learn how to work safely and effectively with cancer patients, the following are two important instructors in this modality:
Isabel Adkins, BA, CMT, is considered an expert in the field of Oncology Massage. She is one of the field’s leading educators. She has been a keynote speaker at the UC Davis Cancer Center forums on complementary medicine and she was a presenter at the first Oncology Massage Healing Summit in May of 2007. Isabel recently collaborated on the new edition of Medicine Hands, just released in January 2007, with a chapter on an Eastern approach to strengthening the body during cancer treatment and disease.
Isabel Adkins is the primary instructor for the Oncology Massage Certification Program at the Massage Therapy Institute (MTI) in Davis, California. This 300 hour program is the only comprehensive oncology massage program approved by the Bureau for Private Postsecondary and Vocational Education (BPPVE) in California, and one of the few programs in this modality that exist in the United States. Isabel directed and supervised the Oncology Massage Program at Sierra Nevada Memorial Hospital and is currently developing an Oncology Massage Program at Alta Bates Cancer Center in Berkeley.
Isabel's oncology massage approach integrates both Western and Eastern modalities of bodywork in order to address the symptoms and side-effects of both treatments and disease.
http://www.oncologymassagematters.com
Gayle MacDonald, MS, LMT, is the author of Medicine Hands: Massage Therapy for People with Cancer (Findhorn Press) and Massage for the Hospital Patient and Medically Frail Client (Lippincott Williams and Wilkin.) Her expertise comes from more than 10 years of work with oncology patients at Oregon Health and Science University. She has also supervised massage students and therapists on the oncology unit, in chemo infusion, radiation oncology, and the bone marrow transplant unit.
Gayle created and teaches “Massage for People Living with Cancer ©: "A Basic Training Course for Massage Practitioners and Students, Bodyworkers, and Other Professional Touch Therapists”
http://www.medicinehands.com
Information for massage clients or potential clients:
Oncology Massage Therapist Referral:
If you live in another area and want to find a massage therapist who has advanced training in oncology massage, we may be able to help you. Although there are still a limited number of therapists trained in this specialty, we have some contacts throughout the country and will do our best to connect you with someone close to you.
To contact us:
phone: Nicki Hansen-Dix, 530-320-9647
email: info@oncologymassage.net
No-Cost Community Service Day
Oncology Massage Clinic
Implemented January of 2006, a no-cost Oncology Massage clinic was created in Grass Valley, CA by five professional oncology massage therapists who practiced in northern California. The clinic, based on a heart-centered, yet therapeutic (symptom relieving - immunity building) approach, is staffed by experienced oncology massage therapists with a minimum of 80 hours of advanced training in oncology massage with Isabel Adkins. These therapists volunteer their time one to two times a month to give free massages to people who are in treatment for cancer. After operating seven months, this clinic was replicated with a sister center in Sacramento.
To make an appointment in the Sacramento area, contact