The Use of Complementary Medications by Cancer Patients Attending an Outpatient Pain and Symptom Clinic

Abstract

Complementary medications appear to be gaining popularity among cancer patients. When we surveyed 143 advanced cancer patients attending an outpatient pain and symptom clinic at a regional cancer centre as to their use of complementary medications and nutritional supplements, we found 37% (53/143) to be making use of complementary medications. Users tended to be younger (mean age 53.3 years) and have a preference for purchase from health stores, with 61% of complementary medications being bought there. Health store staff were the primary recommenders for both men and women and especially for those over 60 years of age. Of the 197 complementary medications purchased, 78 (39.6%) were herbs, 67 (32.5%) were vitamins, 13 (6.6%) were minerals, 21 (10.7%) were other medications including shark cartilage, and 21 (10.7%) could not be identified. Both anticancer effect and the promotion of well-being were prominent among the stated reasons for using these medications.

Complementary therapy and support services for formal and informal caregivers in Italian palliative care hospices: an exploratory and descriptive study

“…Thus, as noted by Correa-Velez and colleagues [10], the reasons for CM use in end-of-life care may be grouped into three categories or dimensions: physical (e.g., to provide symptomatic relief from the disease or its treatment [11]); psychological (e.g., as a means of coping with the emotional aspects of facing an incurable, life-threatening disease [12,13]); and social (e.g., in response to dissatisfaction with conventional medical care including patients' need for greater autonomy and control [12]). CM use is common in patients with human immunodeficiency virus (HIV), acquired immune deficiency syndrome (AIDS), and cancer [14,15].…”

The use of dietary supplements in a community hospital comprehensive cancer center: implications for conventional cancer care

“…Although several studies have reported on the utilization of dietary supplements as part of an overall assessment of CAM use [7][8][9][10][11][12][13][14][15][16][17][18], only a few studies published to date have reported exclusively on dietary supplement use in a cancer treatment setting [6,19]. The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of dietary supplements in a community hospital comprehensive cancer center examining the (1) prevalence and patterns of use, (2) characteristics of users, (3) reasons and information sources of use, and (4) perceived benefits of use.…”

Is a biopsychosocial–spiritual approach relevant to cancer treatment? A study of patients and oncology staff members on issues of complementary medicine and spirituality

“…Recent CAM use may as well be associated with greater psychosocial distress and a worse quality of life [14]. In most cases, CAM users do not express disappointment or dissatisfaction with conventional medicine but hope to do everything possible to regain health, to gain more control in decision making, and to improve the quality of life [3,5,7,9,12,[15][16][17].…”