2017/06/22 by Skyler B. Johnson, Henry S. Park, Cary P. Gross +1 · 2 voices · 1 citation
Medicine · Biochemistry, Genetics and Molecular Biology · #Complementary and Alternative Medicine Studies #Childhood Cancer Survivors' Quality of Life #BRCA gene mutations in cancer
paper · pdf · doi:10.1093/jnci/djx145
openalex publication_date 2017/06/22 · openalex created_date 2025/10/10 · openalex updated_date 2026/07/31
There is limited available information on patterns of utilization and efficacy of alternative medicine (AM) for patients with cancer. We identified 281 patients with nonmetastatic breast, prostate, lung, or colorectal cancer who chose AM, administered as sole anticancer treatment among patients who did not receive conventional cancer treatment (CCT), defined as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, surgery, and/or hormone therapy. Independent covariates on multivariable logistic regression associated with increased likelihood of AM use included breast or lung cancer, higher socioeconomic status, Intermountain West or Pacific location, stage II or III disease, and low comorbidity score. Following 2:1 matching (CCT = 560 patients and AM = 280 patients) on Cox proportional hazards regression, AM use was independently associated with greater risk of death compared with CCT overall (hazard ratio [HR] = 2.50, 95% confidence interval [CI] = 1.88 to 3.27) and in subgroups with breast (HR = 5.68, 95% CI = 3.22 to 10.04), lung (HR = 2.17, 95% CI = 1.42 to 3.32), and colorectal cancer (HR = 4.57, 95% CI = 1.66 to 12.61). Although rare, AM utilization for curable cancer without any CCT is associated with greater risk of death.