TCM works to gain recognition in West

"Now we need to use modern technologies and ways of thinking to explain to the world how TCM works on specific diseases and prove that it can cure diseases.

"The modernization of TCM is the prerequisite for it to go global."

The cooperative project began in 2008. It has chosen 26 diseases and is collecting evidence of TCM's curative effects.

It requires a huge amount of work to search among the sea of ancient documents for descriptions of the symptoms and pathogenesis, and compare them with modern descriptions. The research team will then use the assessment system it established to evaluate the therapies.

Besides collecting evidence from documents, the team also conducts clinical research combining approaches of TCM and Western medicine.

The research on psoriasis and chronic obstructive pulmonary disease is almost finished and the results will be published in papers and as part of the book collection Evidence-based Research of Clinical Chinese Medicine.

The books on the two diseases, with Chinese and English versions, are expected to be published this month, Lu says.

Meanwhile, select young Chinese scholars were sent last year to work and study at the Royal Melbourne Institute of Technology, where they will obtain doctorates. The project plans to cultivate 20 such doctors by 2025, Lu adds.

Traditional Chinese medical science relies largely on herbal medications to prevent and help the human body fight ailments, relieve pain and restore health. It also adopts therapies such as acupuncture, blood letting and medical massage.

Yang Zhen, an associate professor in pharmacology at Beijing University of Chinese Medicine, says acupuncture has become popular in many countries, such as the United States, Canada and Australia.

"Acupuncture has been accepted in American society as it has proved effective in many cases, and acupuncture services are available in many big hospitals in the US," says Yang, who is also a licensed acupuncturist in California.

Acupuncture can cure many diseases that modern medicine fails to handle, such as in alleviating vomiting after chemotherapy for cancer patients and easing the side effects caused by taking painkillers, he says.

"Many big insurance companies have included acupuncture treatment to attract more people. In many states, the US government medical insurance plans also cover acupuncture."

California alone has an estimated 15,000 acupuncturists, most of them non-Asians who serve not only Chinese but also others, Yang says.

However, compared with acupuncture, traditional Chinese medicine is not well accepted in the US, he says.

Medical insurance plans do not pay for TCM expenses, which affects the popularity of TCM, he says.

China will make greater efforts to promote overseas development of TCM and medical care in the next five years, according to a national plan issued by the State Council in April.