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KMID : 0358120020280020198
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Journal of the Korean Public Health Association
2002 Volume.28 No. 2 p.198 ~ p.211
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A Study on the Use, Understanding and Satisfaction with Alternative Therapy for Hospitalized Cancer Patients
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Seol Kyung-Lan
Choi Soo-Yong
Lee Jong-In
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Abstract
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This study carried out in order to know the use of alternative therapy for cancer patients, to measure the levels of their understanding and satisfaction with alternative therapy. The survey was conducted on 182 cancer patients, who were hospitalized at Seoul-based W Hospital specializing in cancer treatment, during the period of September through November 2000 by means of structured questionnaires. The results of the study can be summarized as follows:
On sex, the male accounted for 41.8%(76) and the female for 58.2%(106) among 182 subjects. The mean age for male and female was 58.1 and 51.6, respectively. Out of the 182 cancer patients, 46.7% used one or more kinds of alternative therapy, and the subjects used three kinds of it on average. By the kind of alternative therapy, 73.5% of the patients used dietary and nutritional treatment, and 19.0% chose herb treatment including Oriental medicines. The use of alternative therapy by the extent of cancer indicated 42.7% for the disease which was localized at a specific organ and 47.6% for the case of remote metastasis to other organs, showing the higher ratio as the disease progressed. On the channel of information on alternative therapy, 47.0% of the patients mentioned their family members or acquaintances, whereas 29.5% obtained the information through other patients suffering from the same disease. On the effectiveness relating to the application of alternative therapy, 37.6% of the subjects mentioned ´undecided´, while 23.5% and 11.8% replied ´psychologically trustworthy´ and ´ineffective´, respectively. Regarding to the problems of alternative therapy, 50.7% of the users mentioned ´no scientific proof´, while ´high cost´ and ´concern about possible side effects´ accounted for 27.0% and 10.6%, respectively.
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KEYWORD
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Alternative therapy, Cancer patients
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