Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia

Keene, Martin R., Heslop, Ian M., Sabesan, Sabe S., and Glass, Beverley D. (2022) Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia. Complementary Therapies in Medicine, 71. 102879.

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DOI: 10.1016/j.ctim.2022.102879

View at Publisher Website: https://doi.org/10.1016/j.ctim.2022.1028...

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Abstract

Objectives: This study aimed to investigate CAMs used, and reasons for and disclosure of this use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia.

Methods: Patients attending the Day Oncology Unit of the Townsville University Hospital were invited to participate in a self-completed questionnaire or telephone interview regarding perspectives of their CAM use. Data were analysed using descriptive statistics and chi-squared and independent t-tests were performed to allow comparison between the responses by CAM users and non-users.

Results: 102 completed questionnaires were used in the analysis, where 40.2 % of respondents were found to be using some form of CAM. Cannabis, magnesium, and massage were the most prominent therapies used, with cannabis use in cancer, not commonly reported in prior literature. The main reasons given for using CAM were to treat symptoms of cancer, side-effects of treatment or to improve general health. Two-thirds of these respondents disclosed their CAM use to health professionals mostly to obtain a professional opinion or due to concerns of interactions with cancer treatment. CAM users were statistically more likely to have used CAM prior to their cancer diagnosis and have lower emotional wellbeing than non-users. Non-CAM users indicated that a lack of knowledge of CAM or concerns regarding interactions with cancer treatment were the most popular reasons for not adopting these therapies.

Conclusion: While lower than the averages of previously published CAM use, our study highlights that there is still a significant group of cancer patients in the North Queensland region using CAMs.


Item ID:	76319
Item Type:	Article (Research - C1)
ISSN:	1873-6963
Keywords:	Complementary and Alternative Medicine, Cancer, Prevalence, Disclosure, Quality of life, Cannabis
Related URLs:	https://researchonline.jcu.edu.au/80701/
Copyright Information:	© 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd. This is an open access article under the CC BY-NC-ND license (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/bync-nd/4.0/).
Date Deposited:	19 Oct 2022 08:11
FoR Codes:	32 BIOMEDICAL AND CLINICAL SCIENCES > 3211 Oncology and carcinogenesis > 321199 Oncology and carcinogenesis not elsewhere classified @ 30% 42 HEALTH SCIENCES > 4208 Traditional, complementary and integrative medicine > 420899 Traditional, complementary and integrative medicine not elsewhere classified @ 40% 32 BIOMEDICAL AND CLINICAL SCIENCES > 3214 Pharmacology and pharmaceutical sciences > 321402 Clinical pharmacology and therapeutics @ 30%
SEO Codes:	20 HEALTH > 2001 Clinical health > 200105 Treatment of human diseases and conditions @ 100%
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