Meet the Oncology Acupuncture Toronto Team
PAULINE SOK YIN HWANG, R.AC, R.TCMP
Pauline uses acupuncture, herbs, moxibustion, nutrition, cupping, acupressure, mindfulness meditation and wellness coaching to support people through cancer treatment, recovery and prevention. In practice since 2012, she also treats many general practice patients whose health concerns are not cancer-related (e.g. pain, digestion, insomnia, anxiety, stress, women’s health, fertility, depression, auto-immune conditions, etc.). She is a sought-after teacher and lecturer in the health and wellness field, especially in supportive cancer care.
Let that which we love Be what we do There are a thousand ways to kneel and kiss the earth. – Rumi
Extensive education and training.
Pauline is an Ontario-licensed Registered Acupuncturist (R.Ac.). and Registered Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner (R.TCMP). She graduated in 2003 with an Honours BSc degree in Cognitive Neuroscience from McGill University, completing her research thesis in the Faculty of Medicine. Coming from a family of medical professionals, and passionate about how our minds, bodies and environments are connected, she went on to complete eight full years of basic and advanced studies in Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) – obtaining a Diploma of Acupuncture (Institute of Traditional Medicine), a Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioner Diploma (Eight Branches Academy of Eastern Medicine) and a Master’s degree in Medicine, with a major in TCM Internal Medicine and Integrative Oncology (Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine).
Pauline interned at the Jiangsu Provincial Chinese Medicine Hospital, one of the top-rated integrative medicine hospitals in China. She has been registered with the College of Traditional Chinese Medicine Practitioners and Acupuncturists of Ontario since its inception, and holds memberships in the Society for Integrative Oncology, the Chinese Medicine and Acupuncture Association of Canada and the National Acupuncture Detoxification Association. She has completed extensive post-graduate training in classical and anatomical acupuncture, classical herbal formulas and oncology acupuncture (Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center).
Passion for supporting people with cancer and their loved ones.
Through the personal experiences of her family and friends, Pauline came to realize the great need for comprehensive, holistic, high quality support for individuals and families facing cancer. This led her to create Oncology Acupuncture Toronto, which cooperates with the Marsden Centre for Excellence in Integrative Medicine, one of the leading naturopathic oncology clinics in Canada, to offer effective, evidence-informed natural supportive care to people with cancer and their loved ones. This care can reduce the side effects of cancer treatment, support the immune system, promote recovery and strength, and help prevent cancer recurrence.
Involved in research and education.
In addition to her clinical training, Pauline is passionate about scientific research in TCM and integrative medicine. Her Master’s thesis project focused on TCM herb selection and safety during conventional breast cancer treatment (surgery, chemo, radiation, targeted and endocrine therapies), completed under the supervision of Dr. Ye Li Hong, Professor of TCM Oncology at Nanjing University of Chinese Medicine, and Dr. Xiaoshu Zhu, Associate Dean of University of Western Sydney’s School of Science and Health, and key senior cancer researcher at the National Institute of Complementary Medicine (NICM). Pauline is a past recipient of a National Science and Engineering Research Council grant, China Scholarship Council funding, and is currently preparing several manuscripts for submission to scientific journals. She has given lectures at NJUCM, served as a preceptor at the Canadian College of Naturopathic Medicine, and been invited to teach at two Toronto-area TCM colleges.
Walking the talk with a mindful, inclusive approach.
Outside of Traditional Chinese Medicine, Pauline has been practicing insight meditation since 2005, a key ingredient of her own healing (from depression, insomnia, facial paralysis, burnout, childhood trauma, and chronic digestive issues). She has also developed and led an eight-week mindfulness meditation training course. Pauline has decades of experience in the community health and social justice fields, and draws from her training in active listening, trauma-informed counselling, anti-oppression and facilitation to support individuals and groups with diverse backgrounds and needs. In her spare time, Pauline enjoys dance, camping, reading, meditation, cycling, gardening, yoga, writing, playing piano, drawing and volunteering.
Pauline strives to create an LGBTQ2S-positive space and to be as welcoming as possible toward people from all walks of life, regardless of gender identity, sexual orientation, dis/ability, age, race, ethnicity, religion, or class background. She offers clinical services in wheelchair-accessible spaces, and has a certain number of discounted spots available for those with financial barriers. To read more about her personal journey into health and well-being, click here.
RIAN SCOTT, R.AC
“For patients, caregivers and families, acupuncture and Chinese medicine has much to offer to those affected by Cancer. After seeing loved ones struggle with diagnoses, chronic health conditions, and the effects of allopathic (conventional) biomedicine, I recognized that gaps in the care under the midern medical system can be addressed by Chinese Medicine’s unique ability to engage the public in supportive and effective forms of complementary care. Seeing patients and caregivers get the support they need is why I am continually inspired to practice this medicine.”
– Rian Scott, R.Ac
Rian is a licensed Acupuncturist and Practitioner of Chinese Medicine in practice since 2014. Rian uses an integrative approach to health and wellness through diagnostic principles and therapies rooted in Traditional East Asian Medicine. He is passionate about offering healthcare using a natural and non-invasive approach to your wellness. Central to his practice is the importance he places on patient education and taking ownership of one’s health and healing.
In his practice he uses mainly Japanese forms of Acupuncture in which are comparatively more gentle and less invasive with patients experiencing little to no pain during treatments.
Rian has completed the Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Centre’s Fundamentals of Oncology Acupuncture professional training course for acupuncturists. He is passionate about helping people with cancer and their loved ones get the support they need.
Rian’s goal as your healthcare provider is to provide you with a comprehensive treatment approach to address your health concerns; this includes referring you to other practitioners and specialists in other areas of care if needed, so as to ensure your optimizing your resource of care.
He welcomes new patients and offers free 15 minute consults to discuss your main concerns and a personalized approach to care.
Please click here to book an appointment with Rian Scott today.