Alternative Therapies for Cancer – Do They Work?

Alternative Therapies for Cancer – Do They Work?

Medical research requires study transcripts prepared by a medical transcription company. This blog discusses whether alternative cancer therapies work.

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Research on life-threatening illnesses such as cancer is ongoing with a view to perfect the treatment options available for patients and increasing their chance of survival. The documentation of such studies including interviews with patients, doctor’ notes and other recordings are kept up to date with the support of medical transcription outsourcing solutions. While such research is very significant to arrive at new and more innovative treatment options, there is also research undertaken on non-conventional cancer treatment solutions. A major concern for cancer physicians now is the inclination of patients to experiment with unconventional treatment options that could be risky for them and that could compromise the good effects they have gained from CCT or conventional cancer treatment.

What is the reason for this trend among patients? According to an editorial published in the September issue of Lancet Oncology, this is largely due to a general decline in public trust in physicians and increase in misinformation and fake news spread through the internet. The collision between patient autonomy, falling trust and the rise of misinformation in social media has led to self-diagnosis and use of alternative therapies by cancer patients. This can put the life of the patients at risk. The editorial says that all entities working in the oncology world must work together to tackle the large amount of disinformation and lies that are being spread through social media, news avenues, and marketing channels. The focus must be on communicating accurate information.

There must be efforts such as that of the National Institutes of Health to help users to evaluate health information on the Internet. Just as for other diseases and health conditions, spreading false news and wrong information is common in oncology. Given the seriousness of cancer, all stakeholders in oncology world should challenge such misinformation when there is no proper evidence base for the treatment’s efficacy. There are online forums and blogs as well as other resources that have been set up such as that of Cancer Research UK to debunk myths related to cancer treatments and provide researched information about available alternative therapies. However, with the increasing popularity of the internet, people are being attracted to the news spread online regarding the so-called effective cancer treatments and go ahead to try those out without professional consultation with their doctors.

The phenomenal growth of the Internet enables people to share their ideas and views, which are a good thing, but it also leads to spreading of fake news or misinformation. It is true that a number of cancer patients use some form of complementary and alternative medicine to relieve pain and control the adverse effects of the disease or treatment. Indeed, some integrative approaches and lifestyle changes may also influence cancer survivorship similar to conventional cancer care. A study published online in

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Current Oncology Reports this March points out that there is good evidence from multiple studies that suggest that alternative therapies such as nutrition, certain supplements, stress reduction, and physical activity have considerable effect on survival.

The lead author of the study says that the effect of exercise on the risk for breast cancer recurrence is similar to that seen with the endocrine therapy tamoxifen. While tamoxifen can reduce the risk for breast cancer recurrence by about 40%, physical activity at a level of 9 metabolic equivalents of task (METS) per week reduces the risk for recurrence by 50%. This has been established by long-term studies that are 10 – 15 years in duration. Patients and physicians know of the benefit of tamoxifen; however, they are not often aware of the major survival advantage of physical activity. The study reviewed evidence from studies that evaluated the use of mind-body interventions (guided imagery, mindfulness meditation, yoga), physical activity, nutrition and combined CAM approaches in cancer patients.

Alternative therapies that have been proven effective through dedicated studies may be good for cancer patients. The problem now is that patients are moving to alternative and unproven therapies without consulting their treating doctors. Physicians in turn are practising defensive medicine (overuse of diagnostic tests) to avoid medical negligence lawsuits. A study, Complementary Medicine, Refusal of Conventional Cancer Therapy, and Survival Among Patients with Curable Cancers, showed that cancer patients who use complementary medicine are more likely to refuse surgery, radiology and chemotherapy and tend to die earlier than patients who receive conventional medicine. Cancer specialists say that patients can use alternative therapies as a complement to conventional cancer treatment and not to replace it.

To provide patients the correct information regarding conventional and unconventional cancer treatments, physicians will have to regain the trust of their patients. Efforts should be made to communicate medical advances accurately to both patients and the laymen. Meanwhile, physicians can have their documentation tasks completed in a timely manner and maintain accurate medical records with the support of reliable medical transcription service provider.

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