Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia
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-co...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Elsevier
2022-12-01
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| Series: | Complementary Therapies in Medicine |
| Subjects: | |
| Online Access: | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229922000814 |
| _version_ | 1811178729177612288 |
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| author | Martin R. Keene Ian M. Heslop Sabe S. Sabesan Beverley D. Glass |
| author_facet | Martin R. Keene Ian M. Heslop Sabe S. Sabesan Beverley D. Glass |
| author_sort | Martin R. Keene |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | 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. |
| first_indexed | 2024-04-11T06:24:17Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-8e84a168c39a41078e14bce094238740 |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 0965-2299 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-04-11T06:24:17Z |
| publishDate | 2022-12-01 |
| publisher | Elsevier |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Complementary Therapies in Medicine |
| spelling | doaj.art-8e84a168c39a41078e14bce0942387402022-12-22T04:40:27ZengElsevierComplementary Therapies in Medicine0965-22992022-12-0171102879Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, AustraliaMartin R. Keene0Ian M. Heslop1Sabe S. Sabesan2Beverley D. Glass3Correspondence to: Albury Base Hospital, Borella Road, Albury, New South Wales 2640, Australia.; College of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland 4811, AustraliaCollege of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland 4811, AustraliaCollege of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland 4811, AustraliaCollege of Medicine and Dentistry, James Cook University, Townsville, Queensland 4811, AustraliaObjectives: 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.http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229922000814Complementary and Alternative MedicineCancerPrevalenceDisclosureQuality of lifeCannabis |
| spellingShingle | Martin R. Keene Ian M. Heslop Sabe S. Sabesan Beverley D. Glass Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia Complementary Therapies in Medicine Complementary and Alternative Medicine Cancer Prevalence Disclosure Quality of life Cannabis |
| title | Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia |
| title_full | Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia |
| title_fullStr | Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia |
| title_full_unstemmed | Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia |
| title_short | Perspectives of Complementary and Alternative Medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in North Queensland, Australia |
| title_sort | perspectives of complementary and alternative medicine use by cancer patients in a regional hospital in north queensland australia |
| topic | Complementary and Alternative Medicine Cancer Prevalence Disclosure Quality of life Cannabis |
| url | http://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0965229922000814 |
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