Many types of complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) have been used for centuries, but the formal study about the safety and effectiveness of individual therapies is relatively new. Today, cancer centers and government organizations are researching the safety and effectiveness of different CAM treatments by conducting clinical trials.

Evaluating CAM

In a clinical trial, a specific CAM therapy goes through a rigorous scientific process to determine whether an approach is beneficial, not beneficial, or potentially harmful.

Clinical trials have found that certain CAM approaches can help people living with cancer. In fact, some complementary therapies can be especially helpful in relieving symptoms and side effects of cancer treatments. For example, acupuncture has been proven to relieve pain, a common symptom among people living with cancer. It also has been shown to reduce nausea and vomiting caused by chemotherapy.

Clinical trials have also proven that other CAM approaches have no benefit in cancer care. For instance, despite the many claims that some alternative approaches shrink tumors, none have yet been proven to do this in a clinical trial.

The safety of CAM is especially important for people living with cancer, since some CAM practices can interact with existing cancer treatments, and some of these interactions may worsen the side effects of treatment. For example, very high doses of antioxidants, such as vitamin C, have been found to interfere with radiation treatment.

Selecting a CAM clinical trial

People living with cancer who want to participate in a CAM clinical trial should first discuss this with their doctor, especially since some therapies may interfere or be harmful when used with conventional treatment.

It's important to get all the details of the potential benefits and risks of participating in the clinical trial before signing any consent forms. Keep in mind that a participant can leave a clinical trial at any time.

Clinical trial investigators are eager to recruit study participants and use a variety of resources to get the word out, including physician referrals, newspaper ads, and online databases. The following websites list clinical trials on CAM.

http://www.cancer.gov/cam/clinicaltrials_list.html. National Cancer Institute's Office of Cancer Complementary and Alternative Medicine (OCCAM) list of clinical trials on CAM.

www.clinicaltrials.gov. This website lists about 7,000 clinical studies sponsored by the National Institutes of Health (NIH), other federal agencies, and the pharmaceutical industry, including those involving CAM.

www.nccam.nih.gov/clinicaltrials. The National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine (NCCAM) website contains a listing of NCCAM-funded clinical trials.