The Journal of Alternative and Complementary Medicine

ABSTRACT

Purpose: The objectives of this study were to describe the prevalence and types of complementary and alternative medicines (CAMs) used among patients with cancer receiving outpatient chemotherapy in Taiwan.

Methods: This study was a cross-sectional survey. The study participants were 160 patients with cancer receiving outpatient chemotherapy at a medical center in northern Taiwan.

Results: The vast majority of the participants reported CAM use (n = 157, 98.1%). The two most common groups of CAM used were “biologically based therapies” (77.5%) and “mind–body interventions” (60.6%). Fifteen percent (15.3%) of patients took grapeseed and ginseng, which might affect the efficacy of some chemotherapy regimens. Fourteen percent (14.4%) of patients did not know the name of the herbs they took. The most commonly reported reasons for CAM use were to boost the immune system (55.4%) and relieve stress (53.5%). Approximately two thirds of patients (66.2%) had never informed their physicians of CAM use.