Reasons Why Cancer Patients Use CAM Therapies - Essay Example

? Cancer Patients: Analyzing the Influence of Ethni Culture, Age and Gender, Access to and Use of CAM, and the Influence of Psychosocial FactorsStudent’s Number Total Number of Words: 2,000 Introduction The use of conventional treatment such as biological therapy, chemotherapy, hormonal therapy, radiotherapy, surgery, palliative care, and symptom control or a combination of these treatments is usually given to patients who were diagnosed with cancer (Schwab, 2008, p. 654). Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is not limited in the use of herbal remedies but also some form of lifestyle modification (i.e. counselling on diet, physical exercises, breathing relaxation techniques, and substance abuse), homeopathy (i.e. acupuncture, chiropractic, naturopathic medicine, and massage therapy), and meditation (i.e. mindfulness, music therapy, tai chi, and yoga) (Sarris et al., 2012). Since the past 15 years, the number of cancer patients who prefer to use complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has been gradually increasing (Molassiotis et al., 2005). Based on a survey that was conducted in Europe, 35.9% of cancer patients in this country are using at least one form of CAM therapies (Molassiotis et al., 2005). Considering the growing number of cancer patients who are attracted in the use of CAM intervention, this study will seek to explore why cancer patients prefer to use CAM therapies alongside with their typical conventional therapy. Aside from discussing the health-related benefits these patients are getting out of CAM therapies, this study will seek to identify and examine the demographic profile of cancer patient who are currently relying on the use of CAM therapies. For example, who are most or least likely to use CAM therapies alongside with their conventional cancer treatments? Are there any differences in the health care intervention and treatment preferences of male and female cancer patients? If yes, how do they differ from one another? Lastly, do age differences matter when it comes to the health care intervention and treatment preferences of cancer patients? When providing palliative care to cancer patients, the concept of “holistic care” is not limited to the need to improve the patients’ quality of living (i.e. by effectively reducing their overall physical and emotional pain and sufferings) but also the mental and psychological agony of the cancer patients’ family members and love ones (Gill and Duffy, 2010). In line with this, aspects of holistic care of patients who are undergoing treatment within the Oncology department will be tackled in details. As part of going through the main discussion about the relevance of holistic care, strategic ways on how to properly communicate and treat the cancer patients will be provided together with appropriate literature. Reasons Why Cancer Patients Use CAM Therapies Alongside with their Typical Conventional Therapy To examine the reasons why there are some breast cancer patients who prefer to use CAM options, Shen et al. (2002) conducted a face-to-face interview with a group of breast cancer patients in advanced-stage only to find out that the main reason why 37% of breast cancer patients who prefer the use of herbal medicine and relaxation or meditative therapy is to increase their immune system followed by treating cancer. Molassiotis et al. (2005, p. 659) also found out that obvious reasons why cancer patients are using CAM therapies alongside with their typical conventional therapy is to “increase their body’s ability to fight cancer (50.7%), improve their physical well-being (40.6%), and improve their emotional well-being (35.2%)”. Likewise, Helyer et al. (2006, p. 39) also found out that most female cancer patients are using CAM strategies “to assist their body to heal (75%), to boost their immune system (56%), and to give a feeling of control with respect to their treatment (56%)”. In Malaysia, Saibul et al. (2012, p. 4082) found out that most of the cancer patients in this area are using CAM therapies “to increse their body’s ability to perform daily activities (70.9%), to enhance their immune system (58.3%), and to improve their overall physical and emotional well-being (31.7%). Through the use of music and massage therapy or other meditation techniques like yoga or tai chi, cancer patients can benefit from being able to relieve their physical and emotional stress which is necessary in terms of improving the overall health, emotional, and spiritual well-being of the patients (Cassileth, 1999). Likewise, the use of massage therapy can promote relaxation by reducing stress and anxiety on the part of the cancer patients (Corbin, 2005). Other alternative ways to help the cancer patients relieve their stress and improve their overall well-being is through the use of aromatherapy (Cancer Research UK, 2013; National Cancer Institute, 2012; Bannon, 2009). For example, using lavender essential oils, it is possible for oncology nurses to help the cancer patients solve not only their sleeping problems but also reduce the levels of anxiety and relieve their muscle tension (Cancer Research UK, 2013). Therefore, by using CAM therapies, most of the cancer patients who managed to benefit from the physical and psychosocial benefits they receive from CAM therapies are most likely to feel that they have higher hope to live free from physical disturbances and emotional pain (Swisher et al., 2002). Other reasons why some of the cancer patients end up seeking treatment options from CAM therapies is because of their dissatisfaction in the quality of care and treatment they receive from conventional medicine practitioners (i.e. weak doctor-patient relationship, high cost of conventional therapies, desire for patient empowerment, and the lack of trust in the healthcare system, etc.) (Molassiotis et al., 2005; Pagan and Pauly, 2005). Aside from the fact that the use of CAM therapies enables most of the cancer patients to undergo “less severe anxiety and depression” (Helyer et al., 2006; Corbin, 2005), most of the cancer patient survivors consider the use of CAM to be more holistic and patient-centred as compared to the use of conventional therapies (Atwood, 2008). Demographic Profile of Cancer Patients who are Currently Relying on the Use of CAM Therapies With regards to gender differences, more women are most likely to use CAM therapies as compared to men in general (Chang et al., 2011; Evans et al., 2007; Molassiotis et al., 2005; Shen, et al., 2002). One of the common reasons why men are less likely to use CAM methods is because this group of cancer patients tends “to access information about CAM via the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NHS)” (Evans et al., 2007, p. 33). Even though the NHS reported that they acknowledge the use of CAM therapies to help the patients alleviate the common symptoms of specific illnesses like cancer, the NHS also mentioned that most of the CAM practitioners in UK are “not regulated by statute” (NHS, 2013). For this reason, some of the male cancer patients may become more reluctant in trying out some forms of CAM therapies alongside with their conventional treatments. Unlike the male cancer patients, most of the female cancer patients are gathering information and basing their final decision with regards to the use of CAM therapies is mostly because of the strong recommendation they receive from their “friends and/or family members” (Saibul et al., 2012; Hyodo et al., 2005; Shen, et al., 2002, p. 8). Based on the multivariate analysis of Molassiotis et al. (2005), most of the people who were diagnosed with cancer and has been using CAM along side with their conventional therapies are those young female cancer patients with higher educational background. Using a self-administered survey study approach, Helyer et al. (2006) found out that 47% out of 32 patients with locally advanced breast cancer are using CAM methods and that the demographic profile of these users are mostly the young individuals who are married, with Asian ethnicity, and belongs to a higher socioeconomic class. In a nationawide survey that was conducted by Hyodo et al. (2005), it was noted that majority of cancer patients who uses CAM techniques are the young individuals with a modified outlook in life after they were diagnosed with cancer. Similar to gender issues, age differences also matters when it comes to the health care intervention and treatment preferences of cancer patients. In line with this, several studies have noted that the young individuals are most likely to embrace the use of CAM therapies on top of their conventional cancer treatments (Chang et al., 2011; Helyer et al., 2006; Hyodo et al., 2005; Molassiotis et al., 2005). Among the possible reasons why the young individuals are opt to the use of CAM therapies include the fact that most of the young individuals have financial limitations and have more difficulty when it comes to availing the use of conventional therapies. Holistic Care in Relation to Ethnicity, Culture, and Religion on How Cancer Patients Deal with their Illness and Treatment Options Although the use of CAM methods in treating cancer remains clinical not proven, Shukla and Pal (2004) argued that there are a lot of cancer patients around the world have been using CAM therapies on top of their conventional treatment because of the presence of social and cultural influences or financial limitations needed to gain access to a wide-range of conventional medical treatments. In almost all cases, the ethnic background, culture, and religion of each cancer patient may somehow directly or indirectly affect their treatment preferences and how they perceive their own illnesses. After attending several cancer patients within the Oncology Department, it seems to be a common characteristics that patients, who happened to have Asian ethnicity and background (including the minor ethnic groups), have a higher chance of feeling guilty about being diagnosed with cancer. Most of the time, their guilt feeling has nothing much to do with any ethnic or cultural reasons but mostly because of their socio-economic status. As a common knowledge, treating cancer with the use of conventional medicine (i.e. radiation, chemotherapy, etc.) can be very costly. In the absence of health care insurance, the financial requirements needed for the patient to undergo a series of treatment procedures can cause serious financial burden on the part of the patients’ family members and loved ones. After communicating with a cancer patient for quite some time, she mentioned that she has been using CAM methods in the form of diet as suggested by most of her friends and relatives. Particularly in Japan, majority with 96.2% of the cancer patients who uses CAM methods are using food products with “mushrooms, herbs, and shark cartilage” (Hyodo et al., 2005,p. 2645). According to Hyodo et al. (2005), the main reasons why most of the CAM users in Japan are using alternative medicine on top of their conventional cancer treatment is mostly because of their friends or family members’ strong recommendation (77.7%) as compared to a personal choice (23.3%). When providing holistic care to cancer patients, it is the duty of each medical professionals within the Oncology Department to provide each patient with holistic care. It means that it is the professional responsibility of each medical professionals to learn more on how ethnicity, culture, religion, age, religion, and socio-economic status could impact how the cancer patient would deal with his/her illness including their preferred treatment options. As a general rule, medical professionals who are working in an Oncology Department should keep in mind that each patient has a right to make their own choices particularly with regards to their preferred treatment option. In case the patient has been taking some form of CAM strategies, medical professionals should respect the patient for their own decisions (NHS, 2013). Instead of arguing with the patient, the medical professionals should openly communicate with them about the pros and cons of using their preferred CAM technique. For example, religion and spirituality has a strong impact on the cancer patients’ preferred treatment and care (Saibul et al., 2012; Hsiao et al., 2008). In case the cancer patient wanted to be active in any form of spiritual activity (whether it be a part of their ethnic or cultural background or not), the medical professionals who are working in an Oncology Department should strongly support the religious or spiritual beliefs of the patient at all times. By doing so, the medical professionals would not consciously or unconsciously violate the human rights of each cancer patient. Emotional and psychological stress caused by cancer can be represented by signs of anxiety, depression, sadness, shock, and uncertainty (Macmillan Cancer Support, 2013). Specifically the term “holistic care” is not limited to the need to deliver a good quality healthcare service that can increase the patients’ quality of living (i.e. by effectively reducing their overall physical and emotional pain and sufferings) but also significantly reduce the mental, emotional, and psychological agony of the cancer patients’ family members and love ones (Gill and Duffy, 2010). Therefore, it is also a part of the duty and responsibility of the medical professionals to deal with the cancer patients’ family members and loved ones. Instead of trying to calm down or make each of the cancer patient feel better about their illness, the medical professionals should also extend the same emotional and psychological support to the patients’ family members and loved ones. For example, instead of discussing the treatment procedure or any possible risk and other treatment option to the patient alone, the medical professionals who are working in an Oncology Department may consider the need to discuss the subject matter to someone who is very much significant to the cancer patient. In most cases, significant other can legally be the patient’s spouse or parents in case the cancer patient is not married. In the absence of a spouse, parents, or the children, significant others can also someone who is personally close to the patient. Holistic care is all about improving the quality of life of each cancer patient (Gill and Duffy, 2010). For this reason, each of the medical professionals should communicate and learn more about the CAM method each cancer patient is using to avoid inflicting any form of physical and health consequences as a result of mixing some herbal intake with pharmacological drugs (Guan and Chen, 2012; Verhoef, Boon and Page, 2008). Conclusion and Recommendations There is a huge difference in the health care intervention and treatment preferences of both male and female cancer patients. In line with this, the younger women are most likely to use CAM therapies alongside with their conventional cancer treatments whereas men in general are the least likely to use CAM therapies alongside with their conventional cancer treatments. The treatment choice of both men and women are somehow affected not only by their ethnic and culture background but also their religious beliefs and other related social factors. For instance, most women are the ones who are easily convinced and persuaded by their family members and friends to try to integrate the use of CAM therapies alongside their conventional cancer treatments as compared to men. Up to the present time, the number of available studies that can prove the effectiveness of using CAM therapies is still very limited. Despite the absence of a highly reliable clinical study, most of the cancer patients who had experienced using CAM therapies alongside their conventional treatments show positive remarks particularly with regards to health benefits such as relaxation, stress reliever, improve their emotional and physical well-being, strengthen their immune system, and many more. In UK, each cancer patients are respected with regards to their choice of treatment. It has been noted that the use of herbs may adversely interact with the use of pharmaceutical drugs. 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