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| Research article summary (published 30 Mar 2005): |
Complementary medicine in chronic cancer care.
Full Abstract
Although advancements in cancer care have led to increased cure rates and survival times, those coping with the long-term sequelae of a cancer diagnosis often report high levels of distress, poor health-related quality of life, and unmet psychosocial needs. The shortcomings of the conventional biomedical system at sufficiently addressing these chronic illness issues are a primary reason that many patients turn to complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Although patients usually use such treatments in addition to conventional care, they often do not discuss doing so with their conventional physicians, who are perceived as being unreceptive to the topic. Physicians may feel uninformed about CAM treatments, especially given the relatively small amount of data on the topic available in the medical literature. This article reviews a few CAM modalities commonly used by cancer survivors and those with chronic cancer illness, with a particular focus on familiarizing physicians with treatments that may potentially complement regular oncologic care by decreasing stress and enhancing health-related quality of life.
Author information
Author/s: Monti, Daniel A (DA); Yang, Jingduan (J);
Affiliation: Department of Psychiatry and Human Behavior, Jefferson Medical College, Philadelphia, PA 19107, USA. monti1(-atsign-)pol.net
Journal and publication information
Publication Type: Journal Article; Review
Journal: Seminars in oncology (Semin Oncol), published in United States. (Language: eng)
Reference: 2005-Apr; vol 32 (issue 2) : pp 225-31
Dates: Created 2005/04/07; Completed 2005/05/24; Revised 2008/11/21;
PMID: 15815969, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 2/18/2009, IMS Date: )
Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.
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