Safety & access

Monday 2 February, 2009

Reviewed: A/P Michael Jefford,Consultant Medical Oncologist, Peter Mac; Dr Raymond Snyder, Director of Oncology, St Vincent's Hospital; Beth Wilson, Health Services Commissioner, Victoria; Dr Amanda Hordern, Director, Cancer Information and Support Service. Developed with funding from the Victorian Department of Human Services.

On this page: Safety of complementary therapies ι Safety of alternative therapies ι Why doesn't 'natural' always mean 'safe'? ι Accessing complementary therapies 

Certain therapies have been studied and shown to be either helpful or ineffective. Some are proven to be harmful. Other therapies may cause side effects. There are hundreds of therapies for which there is no scientific evidence to back up their use either way. The safety of particular therapies is discussed in the section titled ‘Types of therapies'.

Safety of complementary therapies

Many complementary therapies are safe to use alongside your conventional cancer treatment. Your doctor may even recommend certain complementary therapies, for example, massage to help relieve stress.

Certain factors can determine how safe a therapy may be:

  • Your cancer type - for example, chiropractic techniques would not be suitable for people with bone cancer.
  • The stage of your cancer - for example, certain massage techniques would not be suitable for someone in advanced stages of cancer who is in a lot of pain.
  • Other treatments you are having - several therapies interfere with certain conventional cancer treatments and change how well they work. See Types of therapies for information.

It is important you speak with your doctor before using any type of therapy so that you can discuss your needs and decide together the safest therapies for your situation.

Safety of alternative therapies

People with cancer may think they have nothing to lose by using an alternative therapy. However, a few alternative therapies have serious drawbacks. Some can be harmful and affect your overall health and wellbeing. Even some vitamins and antioxidants have been shown to have serious side effects. (See Vitamins and other dietary supplements in ‘Commonly used alternative therapies'.)

As well as affecting your health, they may cost you a lot of money or you may need to travel a long way to have them. For people who are feeling sick, travelling can be very uncomfortable. People or organisations who promote specific therapies or products may convince you to give up your conventional cancer treatment and try something alternative and more ‘natural' to cure your cancer. Just because something is labelled ‘natural' doesn't mean it is safe.

Why doesn't ‘natural' always mean ‘safe'?

Hundreds of health products (herbs, vitamins, tonics, creams, homeopathic medicines and other products) can be bought over the counter in health food stores and health clinics and on the Internet. Many are labelled or marketed as ‘natural' and ‘healing'. This does not always mean they are safe to use.

Nearly half of all conventional cancer treatments come from plants or other natural substances. Although many of these are proven to treat cancer, they can still have severe side effects. For example, the chemotherapy drugs vincristine (Oncovin), vinblastine (Velban) and vinorelbine (Navelbine) were originally developed from a tiny blue wild flower called the periwinkle. Two other commonly used chemotherapy agents, paclitaxel (Taxol) and docetaxel (Taxotere) came from the yew tree. These chemotherapy drugs can cause temporary side effects such as hair loss, sickness and bowel problems.

Many ‘natural' herbal, vitamin and other supplements can have side effects, some of them serious. They can even interact with other drugs you are taking. For example, some herbs can make your skin more sensitive to sunlight, so you should not take them during radiotherapy treatment. Taking very high doses of vitamin C during chemotherapy can be dangerous and make you very ill. This may be the case with other vitamin preparations as well.

We have scientific evidence to show that many chemotherapy drugs can help treat cancer. The benefits outweigh the risks of their side effects. We do not have this information about most complementary therapies and alternative therapies.

Things to consider

  • Be careful and look into all available information about any therapy you want to try.
  • Talk to your cancer doctor before you begin any type of therapy.

Accessing complementary therapies 

There are several places where you may be able to access complementary therapies. Most hospitals will offer counselling and support groups to their cancer patients. Call the Cancer Council Helpline on 13 11 20 to find out how to access these services.

Other complementary therapies are not routinely available in most cancer care hospitals in Australia. Certain therapies such as massage, reflexology and relaxation techniques may be on offer in some cancer units but it is more likely in the hospice or palliative care setting. Other types of therapies that research suggests may benefit people are yoga, t'ai chi, music and art therapy. Hopefully, in time, a wide range of complementary therapies will be offered in the hospice, palliative care and hospital settings.  

Therapists who work in a hospital setting must have the necessary qualifications. They will be familiar with working with people with cancer. They may be volunteers or paid by the hospital to offer their services.

Other places where you may be able to access or find out about a variety of complementary therapies in your area include:

  • your GP
  • Cancer Support Groups or centres (call 131120 for more information)
  • complementary therapists in private practices (see Finding a therapist).

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