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Breast cancer patients’ satisfaction with individual therapy goals and treatment in a standardized integrative medicine consultancy service

  • Gynecologic Oncology
  • Published:
Archives of Gynecology and Obstetrics Aims and scope Submit manuscript

A Correction to this article was published on 17 May 2018

This article has been updated

Abstract

Purpose

Complementary medicine services are nowadays usually quite heterogeneous, and little information is available on standards for running an integrative medicine consultancy service. This study aimed to assess patients’ satisfaction with a standardized treatment service on integrative medicine.

Methods

Using a cross-sectional design, 75 breast cancer patients from the integrative medicine consultancy service at the University Breast Center for Franconia were evaluated between January 2016 and March 2017. At primary consultation, patients answered a standardized questionnaire on their medical history and treatment goals regarding integrative medicine. In a subsequent interview, patients evaluated their satisfaction with the treatment service and individual treatment goals.

Results

72% of the patients (n = 54) reported high satisfaction with the overall approach of the treatment service. 76% of the patients (n = 57) were very satisfied or satisfied with their individual treatment plans. The most frequently reported goals were to slow tumor progression (n = 64, 85.3%), reducing the side effects of conventional cancer treatments (n = 60, 80%), and a desire to participate actively in the treatment of breast cancer (n = 64, 85.3%).

Conclusions

Using a standardized procedure in integrative medicine allows a high quality level to be offered to patients. Overall, breast cancer patients report very high satisfaction with the integrative medicine consultancy service and state long-term treatment goals. Hence, long-term treatment with integrative medicine methods should be taken into consideration.

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Change history

  • 17 May 2018

    In the original version of this article contained an error in figure 1. It was provided in German.

Abbreviations

CAM:

Complementary and alternative medicine

IMed:

Integrative medicine

TCM:

Traditional Chinese medicine

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Acknowledgements

We would like to express our thanks to all of the patients and staff who participated in the study. The contribution of A.K. Theuser to this publication was made in partial fulfillment of the requirements for obtaining the doctoral degree “Dr. rer. biol. hum.”. Parts of the research published here have been used for her doctoral thesis in the Medical Faculty of Friedrich Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg (FAU).

Funding

There was no funding for the study.

Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Comprehensive Cancer Center Erlangen-European Metropolitan Area Nuremberg (CCC ER-EMN), Erlangen University Hospital, Friedrich Alexander University of Erlangen-Nuremberg, Universitätsstrasse 21-23, 91054, Erlangen, Germany

    Carolin C. Hack, Sophia Antoniadis, Janina Hackl, Hanna Langemann, Judith Schwitulla, Peter A. Fasching, Matthias W. Beckmann & Anna-Katharin Theuser

Authors
  1. Carolin C. Hack
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  2. Sophia Antoniadis
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  3. Janina Hackl
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  4. Hanna Langemann
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  5. Judith Schwitulla
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  6. Peter A. Fasching
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  7. Matthias W. Beckmann
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  8. Anna-Katharin Theuser
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Contributions

CCH, TAK and MWB contributed to the conception of the current analysis, and all authors were involved in the design and acquisition of data from the study. TAK and JS performed the statistical analysis. CCH, TAK, and PAF contributed to the analysis and the interpretation of the data. CCH and TAK drafted the manuscript, and all authors revised the final draft critically for important critical content. All authors have given final approval of the version to be published.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to Carolin C. Hack.

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Conflict of interest

PAF is a consultant with Amgen, Pfizer, Roche and Novartis. This is not related to any of the topics presented in this article. All other authors hereby declare that there are no conflicts of interest.

Ethical approval

All procedures performed in the survey involving human participants were in accordance with the ethical standards of institutional and national research committee. This article does not contain any studies with animals performed by any of the authors.

Informed consent

Informed consent was obtained from all individual participants included in the survey.

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Hack, C.C., Antoniadis, S., Hackl, J. et al. Breast cancer patients’ satisfaction with individual therapy goals and treatment in a standardized integrative medicine consultancy service. Arch Gynecol Obstet 298, 147–156 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-018-4779-4

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00404-018-4779-4

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