Use of complementary and alternative medicine among patients with cancer in a sub-Himalayan state in India: An exploratory study

Pandey, Laxman; Pasricha, Rajesh; Joseph, Deepa; Ahuja, Rachit; Yanthan, Yanpothung; Garg, Pankaj Kumar; Gupta, Manoj

doi:10.1016/j.jaim.2021.01.001

Cited by 14 publications

(9 citation statements)

References 33 publications

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“…As for the information regarding T&CM, the primary sources were informal sources like family, friends, or other patients. The proportion of nonprofessional group in our findings (82.9%) was higher than Indonesia (70.9%) [ 55 ], India (67.9%) [ 59 ], as well as Australia (77.0%) [ 60 ], the United States (60.0%) [ 61 ]. While medical personnel accounts for a significant proportion as the source of information in the United States (17.8%) and Australia (39.0%), but in Asia, it is meager like our result (0.7%) or Indonesia (7.3%) [ 55 ].…”

Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 49%

Traditional and complementary medicine use among cancer patients in Nepal: a cross-sectional survey

Choi

Kunwor

et al. 2022

BMC Complement Med Ther

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Background Traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) is commonly used in South Asian countries such as Nepal. There are various causes and contributing factors for patients with cancer to consider using T&CM. However, little is known about the use of T&CM among the cancer population in this region. Methods The study followed a cross-sectional design using a structured survey questionnaire. Survey participants were recruited from two National hospitals in Kathmandu, Nepal. The survey instrument comprised 30 questions, including variables on demographics, use of T&CM, and perceived level of disease severity, and cancer treatment. Chi-square test and logistic regression were used for data analysis using SPSS ver. 23.0. Results Of 908 participants, 31.6% used one or more modalities of T&CM after a cancer diagnosis. The most commonly used T&CM was Ayurveda (46.5%), followed by yoga (32.4%). About 46% of T&CM users discussed their use with their doctors. The main source of information on T&CM was their family members and relatives (55.7%). Cancer type (head and neck cancer OR: 2.30, CI: 1.23–4.29; abdominal cancer OR: 2.69, CI: 1.47–4.95; lung cancer OR: 5.88, CI: 2.69–12.89), cancer stage (Stage I OR: 1.92¸CI: 1.14–3.25; Stage II OR: 1.76, CI: 1.06–2.94), and the patients’ self-rated disease severity (high perceived severity OR: 1.50, CI: 1.05–2.16) were strong predictors of T&CM use. Conclusion This study underlined that despite the widespread use of T&CM among cancer patients in Nepal, most patients obtained information on T&CM from informal sources and did not disclose their use to physicians. To ensure the safe use of T&CM modalities, physicians should integrate questions on T&CM use into routine patient assessments in order to facilitate active communication and improve the quality of care.

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Section: Discussioncontrasting

confidence: 49%

Traditional and complementary medicine use among cancer patients in Nepal: a cross-sectional survey

Choi

Kunwor

et al. 2022

BMC Complement Med Ther

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“…Evidence from existing literature highlight the association of initial alternate medicine usage to delay in presentation and advanced stage in diagnosis. 4,12,13 In this study, 89.67% of those subjects who had history of alternate medicine usage presented in advanced stage (stage III or IV) versus 50.74% of those who did not. In this subgroup, progressive increase in the period of delay was associated with corresponding increase in the percentage of presentation in advanced stage, from 89.68% in those having more than 1 month delay to 92.22% in those having more than 3-month delay to 99.16% in those having more than 6-month delay, which were greater than the corresponding values for the total sample as a whole.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 59%

“…Evidence from existing literature highlight the association of initial alternate medicine usage to delay in presentation and advanced stage in diagnosis. 4 12 13…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Delay from Onset of Symptoms to Reporting at a Cancer Care Facility and the Impact of Alternate Medicine Usage as a Contributing Factor

Seenu,

Kole,

Dhabal

2024

South Asian J Cancer

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Cancer patients often present after a period of certain delay from onset of symptoms. By tradition, alternate medicine has been the commonly sought after remedy for them. The objective of this study was to evaluate the delay in presentation to a cancer care facility, with respect to advanced stage at diagnosis and the use of alternate medicine. A cross-sectional study was undertaken in a tertiary care hospital from eastern India over 5 months where patients with cytological or histological proof of malignancy were interviewed using a pretested questionnaire. Comparative analysis was done with cross tables along with Kruskal–Wallis test for association between delay and the independent variables (demographic parameters and alternate medicine usage). Predictors for delay were assessed with logistic regression analysis. Spearman's rank test was used to measure the direction and strength of correlation of delay and alternate medicine use against stage at presentation. One-thousand twenty-two subjects were interviewed of whom 61.44% presented in advanced stage (either stage III and IV). About 56.1% patients had 4 to 6 months delay, while 19.1% patients presented after more than 6 months. About 27.5% patients had history of initial alternate medicine usage. Progressive increase in subjects presenting in advanced stage was observed with corresponding increase in delay, from 62.63% in more than 1 month delay to 80.48% in more than 3-month delay and 98.47% in those having more than 6-month delay. More of alternate medicine users presented with significant delay versus who did not (96.08 vs. 67.34% for >3 months delay) and the difference further increased with longer delay. About 89.67% of those who had used alternate medicine presented in advanced stage. Among them, this percentage progressively escalated with increase in delay period. Positive correlation between delay (ρ = 0.742 for total sample) and (ρ = 0.592 for alternate medicine users) advanced stage was observed. This study found a considerably high occurrence of delay in presentation among cancer patients after onset of symptoms. This delay was strongly associated with advanced stage at diagnosis and alternate medicine use initially. It provides substantial information to formulate policies for implementing awareness on symptoms of cancer and benefits of its early detection.

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“…In another study by Gerber (Gerber et al 2014 ), 38.2% of midlife women in Qatar had used CAM in the previous 12 months. Pandey et al reported in India that 46.2% of their study sample used CAM (Pandey et al 2021 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 98%

Complementary and alternative medicine application in cancer patients in Iran

Nejat

Rahbarian

Mehrabi

et al. 2022

J Cancer Res Clin Oncol

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Purpose Nowadays, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is used by cancer patients all over the world. The aim of this study was to investigate the prevalence of CAM use in patients with cancer in Iran. Methods This descriptive-analytical study was conducted on 320 cancer patients in Arak. For gathering information, a researcher-made questionnaire was used. This questionnaire was consisted of two parts: demographic and clinical information; and patient’s attitude toward using complementary and alternative medicine treatments and their effectiveness, as well as how much they used different kinds of these treatments. The data were analyzed using SPSS software version 16. Results Our findings showed that average age of participants was 55.11 ± 15.58. Most of them had leukemia (25.9%) and underwent chemotherapy (55%), and 141 (44.3%) of individuals were using CAM. Majority of patients (73.2%) were using CAM to improve physical conditions, 61.4% were using it simultaneously with conventional medical treatments, and 25% to reduce pain. Participants have reported visiting holy places, yoga, prayer therapy, and using medicinal plants and special diets, respectively. Conclusion Considering the high number of patients using CAM treatments, proper planning and implementation to educate professional members of health team, especially doctors and nurses about CAM treatments is essential. The most important CAM treatments to be educated are spiritual therapies, yoga, medicinal plants, and diet therapy. Moreover, support and education about using these kinds of treatment should be considered in the supportive care program for patients with cancer.

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Use of complementary and alternative medicine among patients with cancer in a sub-Himalayan state in India: An exploratory study

Cited by 14 publications

References 33 publications

Traditional and complementary medicine use among cancer patients in Nepal: a cross-sectional survey

Traditional and complementary medicine use among cancer patients in Nepal: a cross-sectional survey

Delay from Onset of Symptoms to Reporting at a Cancer Care Facility and the Impact of Alternate Medicine Usage as a Contributing Factor

Complementary and alternative medicine application in cancer patients in Iran

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