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While our understanding of pain is rapidly growing, some areas of pain research are lagging behind. This article discusses two current and inter-related gaps in knowledge that are in need of addressing: first, the connections between “brain” and “body” components of pain; and second, the process of endogenous pain resolution. Historical reasons for these research gaps are discussed and solutions are outlined based on an integrative, whole person research approach. These include comprehensive mapping of the mechanosensory and nociceptive innervation of deep tissues; developing objective, non-invasive measurements to quantify the metabolic, structural and mechanical components of the peripheral tissue environment; integrating our understanding of pain pathophysiology, across whole organs and whole body, as well as across bio-psycho-social domains; and understanding the interplay of nervous system and peripheral tissue mechanisms that promote the endogenous resolution of pain and prevent its acute-to-chronic transition. Current NIH-led efforts in these areas are outlined, including several studies within the NIH HEAL (or Help End Addition Long Term) initiative and the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health’s strategic priorities in whole person research. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Our conventional approach to health care tends to separate patients' health by body system, treating each independently and "efficiently"—e.g., minimal time with a provider, reliance on medications, and little investment to support behavioral and lifestyle improvements. Meanwhile, the United States has the most expensive health care in the world, with some of the worse outcomes. Purpose In this paper, we make the case for transforming health care from a disease-centric approach to a "whole person" model. Research Design: We provide detailed health and health care utilization assumptions for a hypothetical patient, Mrs. M, over her life from age 40 to 80 years under 2 care scenarios: the continuation of conventional care (Version A) and a whole person care approach (Version B). Analysis We developed a set of health care utilization assumptions for each scenario, applied 2023 U.S. dollar (USD) resource prices, and estimated cumulative total health care costs. The price and the health care utilization assumptions for the conventional care scenario were validated using Medical Expenditures Panel Survey (MEPS) data. Results: At age 80, with conventional care, we find Mrs. M increasingly frail and living in a skilled nursing facility, with total cumulative health care costs of $353,155. With whole person care, we find her active and generally healthy at age 80, with total cumulative health care costs of $52,425. Conclusions: Although based on an "imagined" case, the 2 versions of Mrs. M's history illustrate how an investment beginning in early middle age to support a healthy diet, physical activity, and stress management can plausibly lead to improved health and well-being, as well as reduced health care spending. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Healthy aging is an integrated "whole person" process that involves an individual's biology, behavior, and social/physical environment. With the recent development of antiaging drugs, careful consideration of the respective roles of pharmacologic and nonpharmacologic approaches to both health and aging is in order. Recent advances in understanding the cellular and molecular mechanisms of aging are providing new measures that can be used as clinical outcomes in studying the impact of antiaging interventions in humans. This paper outlines the strategic interest of the National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) in supporting the development, testing, and implementation of effective, scalable, and integrated multicomponent interventions to support healthy aging of the whole person. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Background: Stretching exercises such as yoga are recommended for cancer survivors to manage symptoms and promote wellbeing in clinical settings. Although other types of exercise (e.g. running) can reduce the growth of tumors in animal models, the role of stretching on tumor growth remains unclear, and the lack of a preclinical self-stretching model has impeded mechanistic studies on health benefits of stretching. We sought to develop a voluntary stretching animal model to address this research gap and apply it to breast cancer research., Methods: Using food, water, and enrichment in the home cage as motivators for stretching, a two-week 24/7 behavior monitoring was conducted in a video-based customizable home-cage behavior tracking system, Noldus PhenoTyper, to promote self-stretching in FVB mice. Subsequently, this model was utilized in a comparative study of voluntary stretching and voluntary running on tumor growth and plasma protein profiles in the MET-1 orthotopic mammary tumor FVB mouse model., Results: The new voluntary stretching model effectively elicited mouse self-stretching in the custom cage setting in the long-term observation and significantly inhibited tumor growth as effectively as voluntary wheel running. Moreover, plasma proteomic analysis demonstrated that voluntary stretch versus voluntary running distinctly impacted systemic protein profiles, possibly linking to different cellular and molecular mechanisms underlying anti-cancer effects and, potentially, exercise-induced benefits in other health conditions., Conclusion: Our work provides the first preclinical voluntary stretching model, which may be well suited to breast cancer research and a valuable research tool to facilitate investigations of stretching health benefits across various research fields.