Alternative Therapy Errors

If you are considering using naturopathic or other alternative therapies to treat your cancer, you should choose your alternative health provider with as much care as you would choose a surgeon or oncologist.

Choose a naturopath who has training and experience in treating cancer patients--you need more than a vitamin salesperson. Ask your friends, family, and medical doctor for referrals. Once you have a short list, interview several naturopaths to find the right one for you.

If you want to use alternative treatments as complementary treatments along with chemotherapy, radiation, or other mainstream cancer treatments, then you should coordinate between your oncologists and your alternative providers to keep both sides completely informed about what you are doing.

Not to do so (and I know several cancer patients who have used naturopathic remedies without telling their medical oncologists) can be dangerous. Consider any supplements, herbs, or vitamins you are taking to be drugs. Make sure your medical doctor and your pharmacist know what you are taking. Not everything “natural” is safe.

Don't be surprised if you find medical doctors who do not want to work with naturopaths, or naturopaths who speak with contempt of mainstream medicine. There is a lot of animosity between the two groups. Keep looking, and you will find doctors in both camps who can and will work together.

@ Jeanne Sather 2006