Chinese and Other Traditional Medicines: Introduction
Key Points
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The majority of cancer patients in the US use some form of traditional and complementary medicine during treatment.
According to the World Health Organization (WHO), traditional medicine (TM), is "the sum total of the knowledge, skills, and practices based on the theories, beliefs, and experiences indigenous to different cultures, whether explicable or not, used in the maintenance of health as well as in the prevention, diagnosis, improvement or treatment of physical and mental illness."1
In some countries, traditional medicine or non-conventional medicine is sometimes called complementary medicine (CM). Traditional and complementary medicine (T&CM) is an important and often underestimated part of health care. T&CM is found in almost every country in the world, including the United States. About 80 percent of people in the world use some form of TM, and demand for T&CM services is increasing.2 A 2005 study found that the majority of cancer patients in the US use some form of traditional and complementary medicine during treatment.3
Traditional and complementary medicine systems are discussed briefly on these pages:
- Traditional Chinese Medicine
- Other Traditional Medical Systems
- Ayurvedic medicine from India
- Tibetan medicine
- Homeopathic medicine
Also see descriptions of these approaches on our Integrative medical systems in practice in the United States and Canada page:
- Integrative medicine and oncology
- Naturopathic medicine and oncology
- Functional medicine
- Anthroposophic medicine
More Information
- Gwin P. How ancient remedies are changing modern medicine. National Geographic. January 2019.
- University of Arizona Andrew Weil Center for Integrative Medicine: Introduction to Integrative Oncology (2019-2021)
- Keith I. Block, MD: Life over Cancer: The Block Center Program for Integrative Cancer Treatment