Comparative analysis of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use in the US cancer and noncancer populations

2008 ◽  
Vol 1 ◽  
pp. 9-10 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Fouladbakhsh ◽  
M. Stommel
Keyword(s):  
Comparative Analysis ◽  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
The Us ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

scholarly journals Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) use in cancer patients of immigration background.

2021 ◽  
Vol 39 (15_suppl) ◽  
pp. 12019-12019
Author(s):  
Alex Wu ◽  
Yunhong Wu ◽  
PRABHSIMRANJOT SINGH ◽  
Vijaya Natarajan ◽  
Waseem Cheema ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
African American ◽  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Symptom Relief ◽  
Foreign Born ◽  
The Us ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

12019 Background: Cancer patients are more likely to use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) than non-cancer patients for immune enhancement and symptom relief. Cancer patients with immigration background may seek out CAM use more readily due to the influence from their cultural background. Methods: We carried out a prospective questionnaire study surveying the use of 21 CAM types to cancer patients between 10/23/2015 and 10/31/2020, to evaluate the association of CAM use with patients’ age, sex, cancer types, stages, race/ethnicity, birthplace, immigration duration, first language, marital status, levels of poverty, education and anxiety. Results: 658 patients were included in this analysis. The median age was 62 years old. The prevalence of CAM use was 66.11%. CAM use was higher in females (71.98%) than the males (54.34%) (p = 1.13x10-5), and higher in patients ≥ 38 years old (67.09%) than < 38 years old (46.88%) (p = 0.0215). Patients of African American descent (both US born and foreign born) (n = 198) had statistically higher CAM use (72.73%) than the Caucasians and Others (including Middle-Eastern, Multi-Racial and Others) (n = 266) (63.53%) (p = 0.0371). There was no difference of CAM use between the US born patients (n = 301, CAM use 68.77%) and the immigrants (n = 347, CAM use 63.98%) as a whole; however, Asian born immigrants (n = 106) had statistically less CAM use (53.77%) than the US born and other non-Latin American born (n = 397, CAM use 66.50%) (p = 0.0161), while the Latin-American born had a trend towards higher CAM use (74.83%, P = 0.0608). The number of years living in the US by the immigrants did not have an association with CAM use. Among psychosocial economic factors, married patients had a lower CAM use (61.23%) than the unmarried group (defined as divorced, separated, widowed, or single status, 70.85%) (p = 0.0102). The levels of education, poverty and anxiety did not show a statistical difference in relation to CAM use. Earlier stages of disease had numerically higher CAM use than stage 4 patients, and patients with breast and GYN cancers had higher CAM use (72.30%, p = 0.00252), consistent with the data on the higher CAM use in females. Prayer and spirituality and Dietary medicine were the 2 most common CAM types used (25.91% and 16.12%, respectively). African Americans of the combined US and Non-US origin showed the highest rate of using Prayer and spirituality (84.72%), versus Hispanics (71.19%), Caucasians (53.85%), and Asians (40.32%). Chiropractic therapy was exclusively used by Caucasian CAM users (9.38%). Conclusions: Among cancer patients of multi-ethnic groups with immigration background served in a community hospital in Brooklyn, New York, CAM use appeared to be higher in the African American patients, and lower in the patients born in Eastern Asia, as compared to the US born, or to Caucasians. Cultural roots appeared to be a strong influencing factor among all the medical and socioeconomic factors.

scholarly journals Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) use in Cancer Patients of Immigration Background

2022 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alex Wu ◽  
Yunhong Wu ◽  
Vijaya Natarajan ◽  
Prabhsimranjot Singh ◽  
Waseem Cheema ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Latin American ◽  
Asian Americans ◽  
Symptom Relief ◽  
The Us ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
The Impact ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

Abstract Background: Previous studies have shown that cancer patients are more likely to use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) than non-cancer patients for immune enhancement and symptom relief. We hypothesized that cancer patients with immigration background may seek out CAM use more readily than the US born patients due to the impact from their cultural background.Methods: This is a prospective, single institution, questionnaire study on cancer patient for the use of CAM. Correlates of CAM use with age, sex, cancer types, stages, race, birthplace, immigration duration, first language use, marital status, levels of poverty, education and anxiety, were studied.Results: Among 658 patients, the prevalence of CAM use was 66.11%. CAM use was 71.98% in females and 54.34% in males (p=1.13x10-5), 67.09% in patients ≥ 38 years old and 46.88% in patients < 38 years old (p=0.0215). Patients of African descent had higher CAM use (72.73%) than the Caucasians and Others (63.53%) (p=0.0371). There was no difference of CAM use between the US born (68.77%) and the immigrants (63.98%) as a whole; however, Asian born immigrants had lower CAM use (53.77%) than the US born (66.50%) (p=0.0161), while the Latin-American born had a trend towards higher CAM use (74.83%, P=0.0608). The number of years living in the US by the immigrants did not have an association with CAM use. Among psychosocial economic factors, married patients had a lower CAM use (61.23%) than the unmarried (70.85%) (p=0.0102). The levels of education, poverty and anxiety did not show a statistical difference in relation to CAM use, nor was the difference between the early or late stages of disease. Prayer and spirituality, and Dietary medicine were the two most common CAM subtypes used (25.91% and 16.12%, respectively). African Americans showed the highest rate of using Prayer and spirituality (84.72%) while the Asian Americans had the lowest rate (40.32%). Conclusions: Among cancer patients of multi-ethnic and immigration background, CAM use was higher in African American patients, and lower in Asian Americans, as compared to the US born, or to Caucasians. Cultural roots appeared to be a strong influencing factor for the selection of CAM.

scholarly journals Complementary and Alternative Medicine Use in Breast Cancer Patients at a Medical Center in Taiwan: A Cross-Sectional Study

2020 ◽  
Vol 19 ◽  
pp. 153473542098391
Author(s):  
Chieh-Ying Chin ◽  
Yung-Hsiang Chen ◽  
Shin-Chung Wu ◽  
Chien-Ting Liu ◽  
Yun-Fang Lee ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Breast Cancer ◽  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Cancer Patients ◽  
Medical Center ◽  
Cancer Center ◽  
Breast Cancer Patients ◽  
Cross Sectional ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

Background Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is becoming more common in medical practice, but little is known about the concurrent use of CAM and conventional treatment. Therefore, the aim was to investigate the types of CAM used and their prevalence in a regional patient cohort with breast cancer (BC). Methods BC patients were interviewed with a structured questionnaire survey on the use of CAM in southern Taiwan at an Integrative Breast Cancer Center (IBCC). The National Centre for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) classification was used to group responses. Over a period of 8 months, all patients receiving treatment for cancer at the IBCC were approached. Results A total of 106 BC patients completed the survey (response rate: 79.7%). The prevalence of CAM use was 82.4%. Patients who were employed, were receiving radiotherapy and hormone therapy, and had cancer for a longer duration were more likely to use CAM ( P < .05). Multivariate analysis identified employment as an independent predictor of CAM use (OR = 6.92; 95% CI = 1.33-36.15). Dietary supplementation (n = 69, 82.1%) was the type of CAM most frequently used, followed by exercise (n = 48, 57.1%) and traditional Chinese medicine (n = 29, 34.5%). The main reason for using CAM was to ameliorate the side effects of conventional therapies. Almost half (46.4%) of these CAM users did not disclose that they were using it in medical consultations with their physicians. Most chose to use CAM due to recommendations from family and friends. Conclusion A large portion of BC patients at the IBCC undergoing anti-cancer treatment courses used CAM, but less than half discussed it with their physicians. Given the high prevalence of CAM, it would be justifiable to direct further resources toward this service so that cancer patients can benefit from a holistic approach to their treatment.

scholarly journals DIPG-84. COMPLEMENTARY AND ALTERNATIVE MEDICINE IN DIFFUSE INTRINSIC PONTINE GLIOMA

2020 ◽  
Vol 22 (Supplement_3) ◽  
pp. iii303-iii304
Author(s):  
Fatma El-Khouly ◽  
Syed Adil ◽  
Harry Hendrikse ◽  
Gertjan Kaspers ◽  
Christof Kramm ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Online Survey ◽  
Diffuse Intrinsic Pontine Glioma ◽  
Survey Study ◽  
Pontine Glioma ◽  
Anticancer Effects ◽  
Significant Difference ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

Abstract INTRODUCTION Diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) is a rare and aggressive childhood brainstem malignancy with a two-year survival rate of ≤10%. In this international survey study we aim to evaluate the use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in this patient population. METHODS Parents of-, and physicians treating DIPG patients were asked to participate in a retrospective online survey with questions regarding CAM use during time of illness. RESULTS 120 parents and 75 physicians contributed to the online survey between January and May 2020. Physicians estimated that &lt;50% of their patients used CAM, whereas 69% of the parents reported to have used CAM to treat their child during time of illness. Cannabis was the most widely used form of CAM, followed by vitamins and minerals, melatonin, curcumin and boswellic acid. CAM was mainly used to actively treat the tumor. Other motivations were to treat side effects of chemotherapy, or to comfort the child. Children diagnosed ≥2016 were more likely to use CAM (χ2=6.08, p=0.014). No significant difference was found between CAM users and non-users based on ethnicity (χ2=4.18, p=0.382) and country of residence (χ2=9.37, p=0.154). Almost 50% of the physicians do not frequently ask their patients about possible CAM use. CONCLUSION This survey demonstrates that worldwide a considerable number of DIPG patients use CAM. Physicians should be more aware of potential CAM use and more actively discuss the topic. More research is needed to gain knowledge about possible anticancer effects of CAM and their interactions with conventional therapies.

Prevalence, Pattern and Predictors of use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) in Migraine Patients Attending a Headache Clinic in Italy

Cephalalgia ◽  
2005 ◽  
Vol 25 (7) ◽  
pp. 493-506 ◽  
Author(s):  
P Rossi ◽  
G Di Lorenzo ◽  
MG Malpezzi ◽  
J Faroni ◽  
F Cesarino ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Structured Interview ◽  
Episodic Migraine ◽  
Clinical Population ◽  
Common Source ◽  
Transformed Migraine ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
Headache Clinic ◽  
Complementary And Alternative

The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) in migraine is a growing phenomenon about which little is known. This study was undertaken to evaluate the rates, pattern and presence of predictors of CAM use in a clinical population of patients with different migraine subtypes. Four hundred and eighty-one migraineurs attending a headache clinic were asked to undergo a physician-administered structured interview designed to gather information on CAM use. Past use of CAM therapies was reported by 31.4% of the patients surveyed, with 17.1% having used CAM in the previous year. CAM therapies were perceived as beneficial by 39.5% of the patients who had used them. A significantly higher proportion of transformed migraine patients reported CAM treatments as ineffective compared with patients suffering from episodic migraine (73.1% vs. 50.7%, P < 0.001). The most common source of a recommendation of CAM was a friend or relative (52.7%). In most cases, migraineurs' recourse to CAM treatments was specifically for their headache (89.3%). Approximately 61% of CAM users had not informed their medical doctors of their CAM use. The most common reason for deciding to try a CAM therapy was that it offered a ‘potential improvement of headache’ (47.7%). The greatest users of CAM treatments were: patients with a diagnosis of transformed migraine; those who had consulted a high number of specialists and reported a higher lifetime number of conventional medical visits; those with a comorbid psychiatric disorder; those with a high income; and those whose headache had been either misdiagnosed or not diagnosed at all. Our findings suggest that headache clinic migraine patients, in their need of and quest for care, seek and explore both conventional and CAM approaches. Physicians should be made aware of this patient-driven change in the medical climate in order to prevent misuse of healthcare resources and to be better equipped to meet patients' needs.

Canadian Ophthalmologists’ Opinions Concerning Complementary and Alternative Medicine (CAM) Use in Glaucoma

2014 ◽  
Vol 23 (7) ◽  
pp. 430-434 ◽  
Author(s):  
Tenley N. Bower ◽  
Sana Muhsen ◽  
Olga Overbury ◽  
Catherine Birt ◽  
Oscar Kasner
Keyword(s):  
Alternative Medicine ◽  
Complementary And Alternative Medicine ◽  
Cam Use ◽  
Complementary And Alternative
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