Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use in Pediatric Oncology Patients in Eastern Turkey

Abstract

The use of complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) among children with cancer is becoming increasingly popular. Therefore, it is important to gain insight into the prevalence and factors related to the use of CAM. This study presents findings from a study of parents of 88 children with cancer who were receiving or had received conventional therapy for treatment of childhood cancer at a pediatric oncology unit in eastern Turkey. The findings indicated that 48.9% of the respondents reported the use of 1 or more CAM therapies. The most commonly used modality was herbal products such as herbal tea and herbal meal, mostly stinging nettle (Urtica dioica). The findings of this study indicate that CAM users were children who were an average of 3 years older than nonuser children and that CAM use was more prevalent among the children who had been diagnosed with cancer for a longer time than nonusers. There were no significant difference between users and nonusers regarding sociodemographic characteristics (such as age education level, economic status), hopelessness score of parents, gender of child, and treatment status. Healthcare providers should remain informed about the benefits and adverse effects of complementary and alternative therapies to discuss treatment options with patients and their families and to monitor treatment efficacy.

Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use Among Pediatric Patients With Leukemia: The Case of Lebanon

“…This percentage of users is comparable with a recent study by Clerici et al 24 who showed that 12.4% of children suffering from neoplastic diseases in Italy used at least one kind of CAM therapy since their diagnosis. However, this is lower than estimates in other studies carried out in the United States, 29 Turkey, 30 and Malaysia. 6 Methodological, cultural, and definitional differences might explain this variation.…”

“…All parents denied any side effects of the CAM therapy used, which, similar to other studies, reflects the perception of some parents that the CAM used is safe and effective. 30,38 Our results indicated that strengthening immunity and improving the chance of cure were the main reasons behind the use of CAM. This finding is in accordance with the results of other studies in Germany 25 and in Canada.…”

“…Note that this finding is consistent with other studies of CAM use among pediatric cancer patients that showed that the use of CAM increases with the age of the child and with the time since the cancer diagnosis. 30,41 In addition, family history of leukemia was a significant determinant of CAM use; families that might have had a previous painful experience with cancer appear to be more accepting of nonconventional therapies.…”

A Qualitative Approach to Find Nursing Diagnoses for Non-Physical Health Problems in Mothers of Children with Cancer

“…Other studies also reported hopelessness of parents, especially mothers of children with cancer (15-17). Despite existing available tools for discovering hopelessness (18), it can be discovered through daily communication with the parents of a child with cancer, by their expressing negative feelings about what would be happen in the future for their child. It has been shown that social support can cause less disappointment and hopelessness.…”

Os sentidos das experiências de mães de crianças e adolescentes oncológicos com a terapia complementar

“…A maioria dos pais entrevistados manifestou necessidade de obter informação vinda da equipe médica, além de um canal aberto para uma comunicação sobre esse tipo de terapêutica. Os profissionais de saúde devem permanecer informados sobre os benefícios e os efeitos adversos das TAC para discutir as opções de tratamento com os pacientes e suas famílias e para monitorar a sua eficácia (ELIAS, 2006;FLETCHER, 2004;GENTIL, 2010;;GOZUM, 2007;HAMIDAH, 2009;MCCURDY, 2003;MOLASSIOTIS, 2004;NDAO, 2013;O'CONNOR, 2013; Metade dos estudos incluídos nesta revisão mostraram que a maior parte dos pais ou cuidadores não revelou ou discutiu sobre o uso do TAC com os profissionais de saúde envolvidos no tratamento oncológico da criança ou adolescente (AL- QUDIMAT, 2010;ELIAS, 2006;GENC, 2009;GENTIL, 2012;GÓMEZ-MARTÍNEZ, 2007;GOZUM, 2007;KARADENIZ, 2007;O'CONNOR, 2013;LIM, 2006;NAJA, 2011;WEYL, 2006). Somente em um dos estudos incluídos na revisão, os participantes ficaram divididos entre revelar e não revelar sobre uso do TAC, ou seja, 50% referiram discutir com os profissionais sobre o assunto enquanto que a outra metade não o fizeram (NDAO, 2013).…”