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Use of complementary and alternative medicine by Chinese women with breast cancer

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An Erratum to this article was published on 01 July 2004

Abstract

The use of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has been rapidly increasing among cancer patients. The aim of this study is to evaluate the prevalence and patterns of CAM use, particularly patients' intentions and their perceived effectiveness of using Chinese herbal medicine (CHM), as well as the relations between the herbal medicine use and demographic and clinical factors among Chinese women with breast cancer. We analyzed the data from a population-based sample of 1065 breast cancer women in urban Shanghai. Patients' average age at diagnosis was 48.1 years and the median time from the initial diagnosis to the follow-up survey was 4.3 years. Overall, 98% of patients had used at least one form of CAM therapy after diagnosis of breast cancer. The most popular CAM modality was traditional Chinese medicine (86.7%), followed by the use of supplements (84.8%), physical exercises (65.5%), and support group attendance (16.6%). CHM was used by 86.4% of patients, while acupuncture was used only by 4.9% of patients. Treating cancer (81.5%) was the most common intentions of using CHM. Other cited intentions included enhancing the immune system (12%), preventing metastasis of cancer or managing other discomforts (7.9%), and lessening menopausal symptoms (4.7%). The majority of patients reported that they had benefited from the use of CHM. Patients who were younger, married, had higher education or income, received chemotherapy or radiotherapy, or had recurrence/metastasis of cancer tended to use CHM more frequently than other patients. The relations between patient characteristics and use of CHMs varied with users' intentions. Given the high prevalence of CAM use among breast cancer patients, research is urgently needed to systematically evaluate the efficacy and safety of CAM use, particularly use of herbal medicines.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Medicine, Center for Health Services Research and Vanderbilt-Ingram Cancer Center, Vanderbilt University School of Medicine, 6th floor, Medical Center East, Nashville, TN, 37232-8300, USA

    Yong Cui, Xiao-Ou Shu, Wanqing Wen & Wei Zheng

  2. Department of Epidemiology, Shanghai Cancer Institute, Shanghai, China

    Yutang Gao, Zhi-Xian Ruan & Fan Jin

Authors
  1. Yong Cui
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  2. Xiao-Ou Shu
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  3. Yutang Gao
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  4. Wanqing Wen
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  5. Zhi-Xian Ruan
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  6. Fan Jin
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  7. Wei Zheng
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Correspondence to Xiao-Ou Shu.

Additional information

An erratum to this article is available at http://dx.doi.org/10.1023/B:BREA.0000032990.90079.74.

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Cui, Y., Shu, XO., Gao, Y. et al. Use of complementary and alternative medicine by Chinese women with breast cancer. Breast Cancer Res Treat 85, 263–270 (2004). https://doi.org/10.1023/B:BREA.0000025422.26148.8d

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1023/B:BREA.0000025422.26148.8d

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