Also called complementary and alternative medicine (CAM)
Complementary and alternative therapies include a wide range of healing approaches and therapies. More and more Canadians want to know about complementary and alternative therapies and wonder whether using them would help their cancer experience. The decision to use a complementary or alternative therapy is a personal one, but if you are thinking about trying such a therapy, be sure to make an informed choice.
Making an informed choice means:
- understanding the difference between conventional, complementary and alternative therapies
- finding out as much as you can about the complementary or alternative therapy you are considering before deciding about using it
- talking to your healthcare team about the complementary or alternative therapy and how it may interact or interfere with the care you are receiving
Using some complementary or alternative products or therapies during or shortly after cancer treatment may be not advised. Any decisions about treatment should be discussed with the healthcare team.
Conventional therapies
Conventional (mainstream) therapies are medical or surgical treatments that are currently accepted and widely used in the Canadian healthcare system. Healthcare professionals use these treatments because the best available scientific research has shown them to be safe and effective (they are evidence based). They are used to treat cancer and relieve symptoms or side effects of treatment.
Conventional treatment for cancer, which usually consists of surgery, radiation therapy, chemotherapy or hormonal therapy, aims to attack or remove the cancer. These methods have been scientifically tested and are constantly being improved in well-designed clinical trials that explore whether the medicine or treatment is safe and whether it works for a particular disease or medical condition.
Complementary and alternative therapies
The words complementary and alternative are sometimes used interchangeably, but they are actually two different approaches. Whether a therapy is considered to be complementary or alternative depends on why and how it is used.
Many complementary and alternative therapies have not been scientifically tested or proven to be effective in treating specific conditions or diseases. Some are in the early stages of scientific testing. Because there has been very little scientific research done on complementary and alternative therapies, we often don’t know whether they are safe, and we don’t know whether or how they help people with cancer. Some may have been tested and found not to be effective.
Complementary therapies
Complementary therapies are used together with conventional treatments. They may help people cope with cancer, its treatment or side effects rather than treat cancer itself. Many people say that they have been helped by these therapies, but research is needed to find out if they are safe and effective.
An example of a complementary therapy is using meditation to help with stress or anxiety during radiation therapy or to improve overall well-being.
Integrative therapies is a new way of describing the combination of conventional treatment and complementary therapy approaches for which there is scientific evidence on safety and effectiveness.
Alternative therapies
Alternative therapies are used instead of conventional treatments. They often fall outside the boundaries of conventional mainstream medicine used for cancer because they have not been scientifically proven to be safe and effective.
An example of an alternative therapy is using a special diet to treat cancer instead of having chemotherapy or another conventional treatment.