The basic principle behind alternative cancer treatment is balance. Yoga, acupuncture, massage therapy, and other treatment procedures are designed to give your body the balance it deserves, which can help restore your health.
You need to keep this important principle of balance in mind if you are considering alternative cancer treatment for yourself or a relative. Complementary and alternative cancer treatment comes with several conditions and there are some things that you must be wary of. With that said, let’s look at the pros and cons of alternative cancer treatment.
Pros
Alternative treatment can make you feel better
Most cancer patients result to alternative treatment to help them feel better and cope with their current medical condition. Please note that how you feel plays an important part in how you cope with your disease and treatment. Most of the alternative treatment therapies focus on reducing stress and relaxation. Moreover, they can help to relieve anxiety, manage your emotions, and improve your general sense of wellbeing.
Helps to reduce the side effects of cancer treatment
According to the experts from Euromed Foundation, Cancer Treatment Center some alternative cancer treatment therapies can help to alleviate the symptoms of cancer and cancer treatment procedures. For instance, acupuncture can help to manage the effects caused by chemotherapy drugs.
Alternative treatment has a holistic and natural approach
According to the experts in alternative cancer treatment, most of these treatment procedures focus on the power and strength of natural and holistic therapies. Standard cancer treatments focus on prescription to cure the patient. However, alternative treatment seeks to find holistic and sustainable remedies for the patient, rather than prescribing medication.
Patients get to enjoy natural healing therapies
Most patients love alternative treatment methods because of their natural and non-toxic healing properties. Some alternative therapies like massage and acupuncture can help a patient manage certain side effects or symptoms.
However, you must be cautious before choosing your alternative treatment procedure to avoid interfering with your conventional treatment. Also, you need to be wary of the possible side effects of your preferred alternative treatment.
Patients can enjoy the comfort from talk and touch
Some cancer patients claim that they enjoy a lot of satisfaction and comfort from the talk, time, and touch that their complementary therapists offer. A professional therapist can play an important and supportive role during your cancer treatment and recovery. A good example of this is professional aromatherapists, who help to make cancer patients feel cared for. This can also help to improve the quality of the patient’s life.
Alternative treatment helps patients stay positive Arizona Homeopathic and Integrative Medical Association professionals say that having a positive spirit is very important for cancer patients. It’s very normal to hope to get better, even if your doctors say it might be difficult. However, alternative cancer treatment can help you remain positive and hopeful—which is all that you need when undergoing cancer treatment.
Alternative cancer treatment doesn’t target the disease, it focuses on treating the whole person
Unlike the conventional cancer medication that treats the symptoms of the disease, alternative treatment focuses on treating the whole person. Alternative medicine practitioners believe that a patient is more than their disease.
That means the cause of their disease might be physical, and it could also come from their spiritual or mental health. With that said, alternative medicine doesn’t ignore certain factors immediately. Rather, it takes a comprehensive analysis of the patent’s diet, daily routine, physical, spiritual, and mental health, in addition to the environmental factors that might be contributing to their illness.
Cons
Before trying any form of alternative cancer treatment, there are several factors that you must be mindful of. The following are some of the drawbacks that you should note before commencing your alternative cancer treatment.
There’s limited scientific research
Today, there’s been an increased funding for research about alternative cancer treatment. However, unlike the traditional treatment methods, there’s limited evidence about the effective of these methods, which has left many questions unanswered. Because of this, most doctors don’t allow their patients to choose alternative treatment therapies.
There’s a lot of confusion in the industry
Most people tend to confuse the words “safe” and “natural”—however, these two words are not the same, despite some fact that some marketers attempt to confuse us to think otherwise. Most herbal remedies that fall under alternative treatment are labeled natural, and yet that’s not true. Also, you should be wary of some manufacturers who claim that their products have miracle cure or contain a secret ingredient to help you battle your illness.
Possible side effects
Unlike conventional cancer treatment, alternative treatment isn’t that scientific, and this makes it more of a personal treatment method. Every patient is treated differently from the other, meaning not every treatment procedure reacts well or works for every patient. Every patient has their own biological makeup. Therefore, you can’t tell how they will react to alternative treatment.
Doesn’t help in emergency situations
Alternative cancer treatment cannot help you in case of an emergency, and conventional medicine is effective in managing some symptoms like pain. So, incase you have an emergency, consider consulting traditional medical practitioners.
