Treatments in Conventional Medicine and Their Limitations
Conventional medicine focuses on symptomatic therapies: injecting what is lacking or physically removing what is excessive.
BM Korean Internal Medicine Clinic selects emergency situations where such treatments are essential under a Korean Medicine physician's diagnosis but offers alternatives to lifelong medication.
- Anemia Treatment: Iron supplements, vitamin injections, transfusions, Erythropoietin (EPO) injections.
- Polycythemia Treatment: Phlebotomy (periodically drawing blood), low-dose aspirin, cytotoxic drugs (Hydroxyurea).
[Limitations]
Iron supplements cause gastrointestinal distress and have low absorption rates.
In anemia of chronic disease, supplements are useless because the body cannot utilize existing iron.
For polycythemia, phlebotomy only temporarily lowers numbers without solving the stickiness of the blood, and cytotoxic drugs carry potential risks like leukemic transformation with long-term use.
BM's Integrative Solution: Normalizing Hematopoiesis and Improving Flow
BM Korean Internal Medicine Clinic helps the bone marrow produce the right amount of healthy blood and ensures it circulates throughout the body without blockage.
- Precision Diagnosis: We accurately identify the type of anemia (iron deficiency vs. inflammatory vs. marrow failure) and the cause of polycythemia through blood tests (CBC, Ferritin, EPO, etc.) and genetic testing (referred if necessary).
- Restoring Hematopoiesis (Anemia): We use herbal medicines containing Deer Antler and Angelica Gigas to stimulate hematopoietic stem cells in the bone marrow and improve gastrointestinal function to maximize nutrient absorption efficiency.
- Clearing Blood & Improving Circulation (Polycythemia): We use herbal medicines (Peach Kernel, Safflower) that lower blood viscosity to inhibit thrombus formation and calm excessive bone marrow proliferation.
- Health Freedom Camp (Life Care): We manage blood quality through disease-specific diet (Anemia: high protein/vitamins, Polycythemia: hydration/smoking cessation) and exercise.
Evidence-Based Korean Medicine (Scientific Evidence)
Research confirms that Korean Medicine treatments restore hematopoietic function in refractory anemia and enhance the responsiveness of conventional drug therapies.
- Effect of 'Yiqi Buxue' on Cancer-Related Anemia without Chemoradiotherapy: A meta-analysis of 1,254 patients showed that the 'Yiqi Buxue (Boosting Qi and Blood)' herbal medicine group significantly improved hemoglobin levels and Quality of Life (KPS) compared to the conventional treatment group (EPO, Iron), with a markedly lower incidence of side effects. This suggests herbal medicine is a safe and effective alternative for chronic consumptive diseases.
- Dang Z, Liu X, Wang X, et al. Comparative effectiveness and safety of traditional Chinese medicine supporting Qi and enriching blood for cancer related anemia in patients not receiving chemoradiotherapy: a meta-analysis and systematic review. Drug Design Development and Therapy. 2018;Volume 13:221-230. doi:10.2147/dddt.s181182
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- Effect of Gwibi-tang on Renal Anemia: When Gwibi-tang was combined with conventional treatment (EPO/Iron) for patients with anemia due to chronic kidney disease (including dialysis patients), hemoglobin levels increased by approximately 1.06 g/dL more than the conventional monotherapy group. This proves that Gwibi-tang creates synergy in improving anemia by replenishing the depletion of Qi and Blood caused by chronic illness.
- Kim M, Han CH. Gwibi-tang for Renal Anemia: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis of Randomized Controlled Trials. Journal of Korean Medicine. 2023;44(3):201-224. doi:10.13048/jkm.23042
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- Mechanisms of Korean Medicine for Aplastic Anemia: In aplastic anemia, which is bone marrow failure, 'Kidney-tonifying (Bosin)' herbal medicines restore hematopoietic function by regulating immunity (increasing Treg cells) and improving the bone marrow microenvironment. Clinically, combining herbal medicine showed a higher total effective rate and lower recurrence rate than conventional monotherapy.
- Guan J, Zhao Y, Wang T, Fu R. Traditional Chinese medicine for treating aplastic anemia. Journal of Pharmacy & Pharmaceutical Sciences. 2023;26:11863. doi:10.3389/jpps.2023.11863
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