Transcript CELIAC - Nutrition411

Where Health Care Professionals
Go for Information
Cancer Treatment Options:
Complementary and
Alternative Medicine
Contributed by Jason Machowsky, MS, RD, CDN, CSCS
Review Date 2/12
O-0567
Where Health Care Professionals
Go for Information
This presentation provides general
information about cancer treatment options.
Consult with your health care professional if
you have any questions or for additional
information because each case is unique.
Complementary and
Alternative Treatment
• Acupuncture
• Chinese herbal medicine
• Homeopathy
• Dietary approaches
• Energy medicine
• Massage and reflexology
• Mind-body medicine
Acupuncture
• Generally safe if performed properly
• May potentially help with:
– Symptoms of nausea and vomiting
– Pain
– Shortness of breath/breathlessness
Chinese Herbal
Medicine
• Holistic system of medicinal herbs,
acupuncture, food therapy, massage, and
therapeutic exercise
• Studied in reference to advanced pancreatic
cancer—efficacy not established in clinical
trials
• Potential liver/kidney damage related to
interactions of herbs with other drugs taken
Homeopathy
• Based on the idea of “treating like with
like”
• Involves taking diluted remedies to
stimulate the body to heal itself
• Little evidence showing efficacy of
homeopathy in cancer treatment
• Few risks involved, unless used in place of
standard cancer therapy
Dietary Approaches
• Many proposals and studies of dietary
approaches to treat cancer or its symptoms
exist, but efficacy of most of these is not
proven and some even carry safety risks
• Ornish diet when paired with exercise, stress
management, and group support shows the
most potential, especially for improvement
of quality of life
Dietary Approaches
(cont’d)
• The following interventions may have a
positive effect in certain cases, but still
may have side effects:
– Melatonin
– Shiitake
– Certain vitamin E derivatives
Energy Medicine
• Qigong:
– Aims to regulate the flow of vital energy
– Shown to have positive results for symptom
management, but study quality is considered
poor
– No serious side effects
Energy Medicine
• Reiki:
– Energy healing used as a supportive or
palliative treatment
– Little evidence showing effectiveness
– No serious side effects noted
Herbal Products
• Many proposals and studies of herbal
approaches to treat cancer or its symptoms
exist, but efficacy of most of these is not
proven and some even carry safety risks
• Interventions may have a positive effect in
certain cases, but may still have side
effects
Herbal Products
(cont’d)
• Side effects may include:
– Cannabinoids: Has mild analgesic effect and
may help reduce chemotherapy-induced
nausea/vomiting
– Garlic: May help reduce the risk of certain
cancers
– Ginseng: May help with cancer-related fatigue
– Mistletoe extract: May have anticancer activity
Massage
• Massage may:
– Improve quality of life
– Decrease pain, nausea, anxiety, stress,
fatigue, anger, and depression in those with
cancer, though study quality is poor
– Generally considered safe
Reflexology
• Reflexology:
– Involves manual pressure to certain areas of
the body, usually the feet, which may
correspond to certain internal organs
– Insufficient evidence to determine
effectiveness
– Generally safe
Mind-Body Medicine
• Hypnotherapy:
– May reduce cancer therapy-related pain,
nausea, vomiting, and anxiety
– Minimal risks
– Caution for those with significant mental
health issues
Mind-Body Medicine
(cont’d)
• Progressive muscle relaxation:
– Sequential contraction and relaxation of major
muscle groups
– Effectiveness inconclusive
– Generally safe
– Caution for those with psychiatric disorders
Mind-Body Medicine
(cont’d)
• Autogenic therapy:
– Mental exercises designed to turn off the
stress response
– Effectiveness inconclusive
– Generally safe
Mind-Body Medicine
(cont’d)
• Biofeedback:
– Learning how to change physiologic activity to
improve health
– Effectiveness inconclusive
– Generally safe
References and
Resources
American Cancer Society®. Treatment types. Available at:
http://www.cancer.org/Treatment/TreatmentsandSideEffects/TreatmentTy
pes/index. Accessed February 23, 2012.
Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Cancer Consortium (CAMCancer),. CAM Summaries. Available at: http://www.cam-cancer.org/CAMSummaries. Accessed February 23, 2012.
For more references and resources on cancer, visit the Onocolgy Center at
http://rd411.com/.