Complementary Therapies

Many people turn to complementary therapies during and after their cancer care. Complementary therapies, also called integrative therapies, include approaches ranging from acupuncture to herbal medicine to prayer. Complementary therapies offer people the chance to try therapies outside of their conventional care to improve quality of life and to relieve treatment- and disease-related symptoms. Others may also turn to alternative therapies, however, this approach is not recommended. This section of About Breast Cancer provides an overview of the complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) field as well as detailed information on some popular complementary therapies.

CAM Therapies To see therapies grouped by category, click here		Issues in CAM
Acupressure Acupuncture Acustimulation Aloe Art therapy Astragalus Ayurveda Black cohosh Calcium Chinese medicine Coenzyme Q10 Coriolus mushroom Echinacea Essiac Flaxseed/Flaxseed oil Focusing Folate Ginger Ginkgo Biloba Ginseng Green tea Guided imagery Hydrazine sulfate Hypnosis Macrobiotic diet Maitake Massage Meditation Melatonin Milk thistle Mistletoe Music therapy Niacin Omega-3 fatty acids (fish oils) Organic Food	Pet therapy Physical Therapy Polysaccharide K (PSK) Prayer Probiotics Psychotherapy Qi gong Quercetin Reiki Reishi Relaxation therapy Resveratrol Selenium Shark cartilage Shiatsu Shiitake Soy St. John’s wort Tai chi Therapeutic touch Traditional Chinese medicine Turmeric (Curcum) Vitamin A Vitamin B6 Vitamin B12 Vitamin C Vitamin D Vitamin E Vitamin K Yoga Zinc	Introduction Major categories of complementary therapies Who’s using CAM? Why do people use complementary therapies? Working with healthcare providers: Shared decision-making The importance of scientific evidence Safety and CAM Finding a CAM provider Clinical trials of CAM Seven tips on CAM Questions to ask your provider References

Introduction