Women's Lived Experiences in the Use of Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Breast Cancer Management: A Phenomenological Study.
Juliana Christina, Wendy Abigail, Anita De Bellis and 1 others
PMID 39267386WHAT IT FOUND
Women with breast cancer in Indonesia described using CAM because medical care was far or unaffordable, family and fear of surgery or chemotherapy influenced them, and they reported perceived pain relief, harms, and treatment delays.
Key findings
01Women with breast cancer said lack of access, inability to pay for medical treatment, and family support were main reasons for using CAM.
02Insufficient knowledge, fear of medical treatment, and unfounded beliefs were other common reasons for CAM use, and participants described delays in seeking medical treatment.
03Some participants described perceived benefits such as pain relief and increased strength, while others acknowledged adverse effects including nausea, vomiting, dizziness, burning stomach pain, constipation, and kidney or liver disease.
STILL TO COME
How it was doneWhat they foundWhat it means for RNs
Read the rest of this summary
You get three full summaries a month, free, and we do not ask for a card. Search, the TL;DRs and your library stay unlimited either way.
What it does not show
The study included 21 women from two provinces in Indonesia, so the themes may not represent all women with breast cancer there. Participants did not review their interview transcripts, so their own check of accuracy was not possible. Interviews were translated from Bahasa Indonesia to English, which may have changed meaning. The study reports experiences, not measured treatment outcomes, so it cannot show whether CAM works or is safe. Pain relief and immune benefits were described by participants without reported pain levels or duration.
The easy way to misread this
Do not conclude that CAM is safe or effective for breast cancer. This is a qualitative study of women's experiences, not a treatment trial, and participants also described harms, false hope, and delayed medical care.