Complementary and alternative medicine is the term for medical items and practices that are not part of standard medicinal care. Individuals with cancer might use CAM too.
• Aid in coping with the side effects of cancer treatments, like fatigue, nausea, and pain
• Ease themselves and comfort the worries of cancer treatment and linked stress
• feel that they are doing something to aid with their own care
• try to cure or treat their cancer
Integrative drug is a method of medical care that combines conservative drugs with CAM practices that have been revealed through science to be effective and secure. This method commonly stresses the patient’s needs, and its efforts to confront the physical, mental, and spiritual aspects of health.
Types of Complementary and Alternative Medicine
Each day experts are finding more and more about CAM treatment, but there is a lot of work to be done. It is not to be a recommendation in terms of what kinds of CAM are utilized, but rather an introduction. There is still a requirement for further research on some of the treatments described above in order to find out if they are valuable. If you have cancer, you should discuss your thoughts about utilizing CAM with your healthcare provider before using the treatments listed below.
Individuals might use the terms “natural,” “holistic,” “home remedy,” or “Eastern Medicine” to denote complementary and alternative medicine. However, specialists commonly use 5 categories to describe it. These are listed below with examples for each.
Mind-body therapies
These combine breathing, mental focus, and body movements to aid in relaxing the body and brain. Some examples are.
Meditation: concentrated breathing or replication of words or expressions to calm the brain and decrease stressful thoughts and feelings.
Biofeedback: utilizing special machines, the patient finds how to handle certain body workings that are usually out of one’s knowledge (like heart rate and blood pressure).
Hypnosis: a trancelike state of consciousness, where you’re becoming aware and concentrating on some feelings, thoughts, pictures, senses, or behaviors. In order to help with healing, a person can be calmer and more open to ideas.
Yoga: an early system of practices utilized to balance the mind and body via poses and stretches meditation, and precise breathing.
Tai Chi: A form of gentle exercise and meditation, which uses slow cycles of body movement and controlled breathing.
Imagery: Concentrating on positive images in the brain, like pictures, imagining scenes, or experiences to aid the body cure.
Creative Outlets: interests like dance, music, or art.
Biologically based practices
This kind of CAM utilizes things found in nature. Some instances are
• vitamins: nutrients the body requires in small quantities to work and stay strong
• dietary supplements: items added to the diet that might comprise constituents such as vitamins, minerals, and herbs, to name a few
• botanicals: plants or parts of plants. One type is cannabis.
• herbs and spices like turmeric or cinnamon (See Herbs at a Glance)