Naja et al.

BMC Complementary and Alternative Medicine (2015) 15:444

DOI 10.1186/s12906-015-0969-9

Complementary and alternative

medicine use and its association with
quality of life among Lebanese breast
cancer patients: a cross-sectional
study
1 1 2 1 1 1
Farah Naja , Romy Abi Fadel , Mohamad Alameddine , Yasmin Aridi , Aya Zarif , Dania Hariri , Anas
3 4 5 6*
Mugharbel , Maya Khalil , Zeina Nahleh and Arafat Tfayli

Introduction
More and more patient with breast cancer are looking for alternative medical therapies with
the hope of reducing the burden o of the disease and imporving their quality of life. The aim
of this study was to assess prevalence, type, socio-demographic and related diseases
regarding quality of life with the use of complementary and alternative medicine among
cancer patients in Beirut, Lebanon
Procedures
For the procedure this study used a cross-sectional survey conduction on breast cancer
patients and recruited into two main referral centers in Beirut : a philantropic hospital and a
private academic medical center. This study used face-to-face interviews with participants
filling out a questionnaire consisting of three parts, namely socio-demographic and lifestyle
characteristics, breast cancer conditions and the use of complementary and alternative
medicine. After three to four weeks after the interview, researchers ressessed secondary
quality of life by telephone using at breast cencer theraphy functional assessement
questionnaire.
Findings
The findings of this study showed that 180 breast cencer patients completed the survey with a
response of 94,6%. The prevalence of using complementay and alternative medicine is 40%.
And the most commonly used complementary and alternative medicine as special foods
followed by herbal teas, dietary supplement and spiritual healing. Only 4% 0f the use of
complementaty and alternative medicine cited by health professionals influenced these
alternative treatment choices and only one in four patient disclosed the use of complementary
and alternative medicine to the doctor treating them. There is no significant relationship
between the use of complementary alternative medicine and quality of life.
Conclusions
The conclusions of this study reveral that complementary and alternative medicine are
commonly used among Lebanese breast cancer patients. In addition, the role of doctors in
directing the use of complementay and alternative medicine found that patients deoend of
their families and the media to choose complementary and alternative medicine and tend not
to disclose its use to the doctors who treat them.
Personal comment
My personal comment is that in this study it is clear that complementary and alternative
medicine for breast cancer patients is appropriate for their quality of life, but one drawback is
that average reast cancer patient does not tell the ttreating doctor that they are also using
medical or modern medicine, also use alternative medicine such as drinking dietary
supplement, herbal teas. Therefore the patient should also tell the turth so that what the
patient does is not detrimental to the patient himself and the doctor also knows what to do for
the right action.