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Article Series: Breast Cancer
Help Me Understand Breast Cancer
Breast
Cancer - Alternative Treatments and Complementary Medicine
When faced with a diagnosis of cancer there
are many people who choose to pursue alternative treatments.
It is important to distinguish this from complementary medicine
in that 'alternative' options are taken in place of conventional
medicine and 'complementary' medicine is meant to work along
with and enhance conventional methods.
In choosing to seek out an alternative approach to healing
it must be noted that this is a serious step and the individual
does well to give it much thought and research. Unfortunately.
there often just isn't the background of scientific studies
that can provide the needed support to indicate whether a course
of treatment is safe and effective.
Nonetheless, given some of the side effects of radiation and
chemotherapy it is understandable that some choose this path
after they have had the necessary surgery. It may be difficult,
however, to find a supportive physician who will continue to
monitor your progress. If this should prove to be the case
it is recommended that an individual seek out a reputable health
care professional that works in the field of holistic healing.
Most alternative treatments require a dramatic change in the
way one lives. It will require commitment and discipline to
achieve the best results. Many programs require a detoxification
period followed by a healthful regime that includes better
eating, supplementary vitamins, herbal potions, breathing exercises,
massage therapy, acupuncture, and meditation to name but a
few. There will no doubt be any number of products offered
from others who have claimed to get successful results. While
caution and research are vital, and there can be no guarantees
given, no one can dispute that there have been some remarkable
results with some of these non-standard approaches.
Complementary medicine, while working along with the conventional
treatments taken, do not usually come with a lot of scientific
grounding and research as well. As a whole, they are not used
to treat the illness per se, but rather as a method to relieve
some of the side effects of cancer treatments and to improve
the quality of life overall.
Some
of the recommended therapies involve - acupuncture and
acupressure to relieve pain and stress, vitamin and herbal
remedies to help build the immune system, visualization to
empower the body to fight the disease, meditation to control
pain and to focus on positive thoughts, aromatherapy - also
to relieve pain and stress, and yoga to help strengthen the
body overall.
In pursuing complementary therapies it is good to coordinate
with your doctor and inform him of anything that may have a
possibility of interacting negatively with the treatments he
is giving you. As an example, Vitamin C is a powerful aid to
boost the immune system but it can work to worsen the side
effects of the chemotherapy drug methotrexate. So it may mean
that you would need to wait until your treatments have concluded
before adding it to your arsenal.
With the growing understanding of the benefits of these different
approaches to healing more and more doctors are open to the
patient's efforts in this regard. In fact some standard hospitals
are adding alternative medicine wings to complement their procedures.
In approaching your doctor with any idea, be prepared with
the research you have made and be willing to take the time
to discuss them frankly with him. While some may not entirely
agree with a reported result they will at least acknowledge
that the patient benefits more often than not from an overall
improvement in the quality of their life.
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by SolveYourProblem.com
: 2008
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