• Journal of Pharmacopuncture
• /
• v.18 no.1
• /
• pp.27-35
• /
• 2015

Objectives: In Korea, cancer is one of the most important causes of death. Cancer patients have sought alternative methods, like complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) together with Western medicine, to treat cancer. Also, there are many kinds of providers of CAM therapy, including providers of Korean oriental medicine therapy. The purpose of this study is to identify the behaviors of Korean oriental medicine therapy and CAM therapy providers who treat cancer patients and to provide background knowledge for establishing a new policy with the management and quality control of CAM. Methods: Structured and well organized questionnaires were made, and 350 persons were surveyed concerning the providers of CAM or Korean oriental medicine. The questionnaires were collected and analyzed. Results: The questionnaires (182) were collected. The questionnaires identified a total of 73 known providers, such as medicinal professionals or other providers of CAM suppliers, 35.6% of whom had had experience with treating cancer patients (52.6% vs. 29.6%). The treatment methods were a little different: alternative therapy and nutritional therapy being preferred by medicinal professionals and mind body modulation therapy and alternative therapy being preferred by other CAM providers. Four patients (7.4%) experienced side effects, and 6 patients (12.5%) experienced legal problems. As the method for managing the therapy, CAM providers, medicinal professionals, and other CAM providers had different viewpoints. For example, some CAM providers stated that both legislation and an official education on CAM or a national examination were needed as a first step to establish the provider's qualifications and that as a second step, a license test was needed for quality control. To the contrary, medicinal professionals stated that a license test was needed before legislation. Conclusion: Adequate management and quality control of CAM providers is thought to involve both education and legislation.

• The Journal of Korean Medicine
• /
• v.25 no.1
• /
• pp.142-151
• /
• 2004

Objectives : To document the use and out-of-pocket expenditure of complementary and alternative medicine(CAM) in Korean adult population. Methods : Nationwide, random-sampled, and population-weighted telephone survey was conducted. The sample size of respondents was 1,000(age over 18). The respondents were asked about their use, out-of pocket expenditure of CAM in the past 12 months. SAS 8.0 statistic package was used for checking the relevance between each variables by performing $x^2-test$ and variance evaluation. Results : In 2001, 64.0% of people experienced more than one alternative therapy and the beneficiary took therapy average figure of 2.07. Alternative therapies were generally used for health promotion(73.7%) rather than curing the disease(26.3%). The most common therapies included Medication(30.2%), Physical-therapy(21.9%) health implements(20.8%), herb medication(19.2%), diet therapy(14.3%) etc. Average annual out-of-pocket expenditure was ￡<192,186. Use varied according to age, living province, income, and education, while cost expenditure did according to sex, health condition, income, education. Conclusions : The use of CAM in Korea is very large and the expenditure for them is 22.6% of national medical expenditure. It shows great need of political and academic approach.

• Journal of the Korean Academy of Child and Adolescent Psychiatry
• /
• v.25 no.2
• /
• pp.73-81
• /
• 2014

Objectives : The purpose of this study was to investigate the use of various treatment modalities including pharmacotherapy, educational-behavioral therapy, and complementary alternative treatment for children with mental retardation (MR) or autism spectrum disorder (ASD) in Korea. Methods : The sample consisted of 50 parents who have children with MR (N=28) or ASD (N=22) : 38 boys, 12 girls ; mean age 14.06 (4.14) years old. A questionnaire was composed of the experienced modality, duration, cost, satisfaction, etc. Results : According to the results, 56.0%, 100.0%, and 36.0% of children with MR or ASD have experienced pharmacological treatment, educational-behavioral therapy and complementary alternative medicine (CAM), respectively. Children who experienced educational-behavioral therapy and CAM experienced 3.52 kinds of education-behavioral therapy and 2.78 kinds of CAM, respectively. Monthly cost of pharmacological treatment was lowest among three modality categories. Regarding treatment satisfaction by parental report, the lowest score was recorded for CAM. Conclusion : Parents who have a child with MR or ASD are trying many treatment modalities and feeling the burden of their treatment.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.14 no.1
• /
• pp.225-230
• /
• 2013

Objectives: The purpose of this study was to determine patient characteristics and other factors associated with discontinuation of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among cancer patients in Korea. Methods: A national, multicenter, cross-sectional survey of cancer patients was performed in which 674 of 2,661 patients were analyzed for their use of CAM after cancer diagnosis. Multiple logistic regression was used to identify the factors related to CAM discontinuation. Results: Among the surveyed cancer patients, 25.3% (674 of 2,661) had used CAM, whereas 38.3% (258 of 674) of those with CAM experience had discontinued CAM therapy. The most frequently used form of CAM was herbs (43.5%). The major reasons for the discontinuation of CAM included absence of effects (23.9%), financial burden (22.9%), and physician opposition (13.7%). Other factors associated with the discontinuation of CAM included metastatic cancer (OR = 2.06), a long duration of cancer treatment (OR = 3.34), dissatisfaction (OR = 4.34), and side effects (OR = 4.23) of CAM therapy. Conclusions: For cancer patients to correctly employ CAM therapy, increase their satisfaction, and reduce their side effects, efforts should be made to analyze the cost effectiveness of CAM, and valid information must be provided to physicians and cancer patients.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.13 no.1
• /
• pp.21-25
• /
• 2012

The use of complementary and alternative medicines (CAM) among women with gynecologic cancer is becoming increasingly popular. Therefore, it is important to gain insight into the prevalence and factors related to the use of CAM. The aim of this study was to assess the use of CAM in women with gynecologic cancer. This is a descriptive cross-sectional study. Data were obtained from 67 gynecological cancer patients at gynecologic oncology clinic of a hospital in Turkey between October 2009 to December 2010 using a questionnaire developed specifically for this study. The instrument included questions on socio-demographic information, disease specifics and complementary and alternative medicine usage. On the basis of women's responses, all participants were divided into 2 groups: CAM users and nonusers. The findings indicated that 61.2% of the women reported the use of 1 or more CAM therapies. There were no significant differences in the sociodemographic and clinical characteristics between CAM users and nonusers (P <0.05). The most frequently used CAM method was herbal therapy (90.2%) and the second was prayer (41.5%). The main sources of information about CAM were informal (friends/ family members). A considerable proportion (56.1%) of CAM users had discussed their CAM use with their physicians or nurses. Turkish women with gynecologic cancer frequently use CAM in addition to standard medical therapy. Nurses/ oncologists caring for women with gynecologic cancer should initiate a dialogue about usage of CAM, discussing the potential adverse effects of CAM and the patient's therapeutic goals.

• Journal of Physiology & Pathology in Korean Medicine
• /
• v.21 no.6
• /
• pp.1590-1596
• /
• 2007

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) has gained in popularity among cancer patients in recent years. The use of CAM in cancer patients is common with about one third of patients using some form of CAM in Western countries. The purpose of this study was to analyze the use of CAM and determine what factors affect to use CAM among cancer patients to provide CAM therapy information and assist therapy selection among various CAM therapies to cancer patients. The design of the study was descriptive cross-sectional, and data were collected using a 16-item questionnaire. This study was conducted in subjects with confirmed diagnosis of stomach, colon, liver, or pancreas cancer, in both out-patients clinics and inpatients setting in a tertiary hospital in Seoul Korea. As a result, among the participants, past or current CAM use was reported by 75%, which shows a statistically significant difference in income groups(P<0.05), but no difference in age and religion groups. The most common therapies use by cancer patients included traditional Korean medicine (32.1%), folk remedies (26.6%), exercise (14%), dietary supplements (11.6%), physical therapy (9.9%), diet therapy (5%), and meditation (4%). 77.8% of patients show satisfaction and 64.4% shows perceived effectiveness of CAM. Male patients with higher income, and previous treatment were more likely to use CAM. The main benefits from CAM reported by cancer patients were psychological improvement and symptom improvement. Of the cancer patients used CAM, 30.9% were dissatisfied, 25.8% did not have benefits from the use, and 7.6% experience side effects. Cancer patients who prefer CAM (more than 3 kinds) used it to cure cancer, on the contrary, the one who do not prefer CAM used to improve symptoms and psychological stability. The main sources of information about CAM were family and friends(54.4%), and media(24.5%), doctor and nurse(18.3%), and religion group(2.6%). Findings suggest that due to the relatively high use of CAM among cancer patients in Korea, this topic should be taken into account in the development of a holistic approach to cancer patients and efficient cancer patients management system and proactive and consistent management of CAM is necessary in the health care system in Korea.

• Asian Pacific Journal of Cancer Prevention
• /
• v.16 no.8
• /
• pp.3125-3130
• /
• 2015

Background: Breast cancer is a common cancer affecting women in Malaysia and the use of complementary/alternative medicine (CAM) has been associated with delays in getting treatment. The aim of the study was to explore the use of CAM and the influencing factors in the Northern region of Peninsular Malaysia. Materials and Methods: This was a cross-sectional descriptive study on a convenience sample of 100 Malaysian breast cancer survivors. Findings: The reported use of CAM among the breast cancer survivors was lower than in other studies but the types of CAM used had a similar pattern with nutrition supplements/vitamins being the most common. The factors that positively influenced the use of complimentary/traditional therapy were income and getting information from television or radio. Survivors with access to internet/blogs appear to have lower odds of using complimentary/traditional therapy compared to the respondents who reported no such access. Conclusions: Information transmitted via television and radio appears to have a positive influence on CAM use by breast cancer patients compared to other information sources and it is important to ensure that such information is accurate and impartial.

• Journal of Society of Preventive Korean Medicine
• /
• v.14 no.1
• /
• pp.137-149
• /
• 2010

In recent decades, as the utilization of complementary and alternative medicine in the United State have been growing rapidly, regulatory controls surrounding complementary and alternative medicine(CAM) aims to ensure patient protection against unproven practices and to provide safe and effective treatments. Regulation and policy method on licensing CAM practitioners varies across the states. Over 85% of the states have the licensing system for acupuncturists, chiropractors, and naturopaths. For acupuncture, although the requirements for formal education are various across the states, a unified written examination has been adopted by almost entire states which have acupuncturist licensing law. Medicare, the public medical insurance, does not cover CAM practices except chiropractic and biofeedback. In some states, however, Medicaid programs cover some CAM therapies including acupuncture, naturopathy, and massage therapy. 67% of Health Maintenance Organizations, the private health plans, provide at least one modality of CAM services. In conclusion, government policies have been strengthened to ensure patient protection, and will continue to integrate CAM practices that are proven to be safe and effective into mainstream health care system.

• The Journal of Pediatrics of Korean Medicine
• /
• v.29 no.3
• /
• pp.1-11
• /
• 2015

Objectives : The purpose of this study is to analyze the trends in foreign clinical trials for pediatric asthma in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). Methods : We reviewed 31 randomized controlled trials (RCT) for pediatric asthma treatment in CAM published from 2005 to 2015 in PubMed and analyzed their treatments, compounds of herbal medicines, acupoints, methods of assessment, and treatment results. Results : The treatments used in the studies were herbal medicines, acupuncture, acupoint application, breathing training, supplement, normocaloric diet, yoga, massage therapy, and art therapy. The frequently used herbs were Asari Herba Cum Radix (細辛). Ephedrae Herba (麻黃), Astragali Radix. The most common acupoints were Feishu (肺兪, BL13). The methods of assessment in pediatric asthma were symptom scale, questionnaire of Quality of Life, lung function test, laboratory studies, and medication usage. In 28 out of 31 studies, treatment group gets better than non-treated group. Conclusions : This study shows that CAM is effective in treating pediatric asthma. More clinical studies using objective outcome measures are needed to prove its efficacy clearly.

• The Journal of Korean Obstetrics and Gynecology
• /
• v.22 no.3
• /
• pp.205-222
• /
• 2009

Purpose: The aim of this study was to review systemically journals on the studies for Complementary and Alternative Medicine in the treatment of breast cancer. Methods: Through medical websites, foreign clinical literatures about complementary and alternative medicines of breast cancer were searched. The cite used was http://www.Pubmed.gov. And then they were divided into three groups. Medication, Non-medication therapies and questionnaire reports. Results: 1. We researched 23 papers about herb medicines. Most of papers were about single herb and there were rarely about mixed composition. And there were papers about Ocimum gratissimum, elliptilimba, seeds of Livistona chinensis, golden feverfew which were not commonly used in Korea. 2. We researched 16 papers about acupuncture. Acupuncture had a possitive effect on such symptoms like flushing, nausea and vomitting and pain on upper limb caused by anticancer therapy or tamoxifen or surgery. 3. We researched 36 papers about questionnaire study. Most were about research for women who diagnosed as breast cancer or women after breast cancer surgery. Subjects were about proportion of using CAM, purpose of using it, most popular CAM therapy, satisfaction degree, and relation with age, aducation and social position. And most conclusion were that patient-doctor communication was needed. Conclusion: Afterwards we have to focus on realisitic clinical studies about breast cancer patients, especially postsurgery and people who takes anticancer therapy. And we have to be interest in acupuncture therapy on breast cancer patients.