Complementary therapies

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Questions to ask your doctor or treatment team

• Are you familiar with complementary therapies or medicines?
• Does this hospital or treatment centre offer complementary therapies?
• Would you have any concerns with me using complementary therapies? If so, why and what should I do if I decide to use them?
• Do you know whether the complementary medicines I want to take will interfere with my conventional treatments?
• Can you recommend a complementary therapist who practises safely?
• Can you give me a letter for my therapist outlining my treatment?
• Will using a complementary therapy mean I can’t take part in a clinical trial for conventional treatment? Am I a likely candidate for one?

General questions to ask potential complementary therapists

• What are your qualifications? Are you part of a professional association?
• What training or experience do you have in treating people with cancer? Have you treated anyone with my type of cancer?
• Do you work in an integrative way with conventional health practitioners?
• What exactly is the therapy? How does it work?
• How can this therapy help me? How long will it take to work?
• Are there any precautions I should take? Or any possible side effects?
• Has the therapy been tested in clinical trials? Are the findings published and available to read?
• Can this therapy be used safely with conventional treatment or medicines?
• Are you willing to talk to my doctors or other health professionals I see?
• How will I know that the therapy is working?
• Do you do home visits if I am not well enough to attend your clinic?
• What is the consultation cost? Will I get a Medicare or health fund rebate?
• How long are your consultations? What can I expect during a session?
• How many consultations do you recommend, and how often?
• Do you dispense your own medicines and supplements?
• How much can I expect to pay for medicines, supplements or aids?
• Have the products or medicines you dispense been approved by the Therapeutic Goods Administration?

Questions to ask about specific therapies

Mind–body techniques

• What type of therapist would you recommend for my concerns?
• Can you refer me to a psychologist, psychiatrist or counsellor?

Body-based practices

• Are there forms of massage or bodywork that you think could help me?
• Which types of massage or bodywork, if any, should I avoid?
• Are there areas of the body that a massage therapist or acupuncturist should avoid or take special care with?
• What precautions, if any, should I take?
• Is acupuncture safe for me?
• Could I try qi gong, tai chi or yoga?
• What level of exercise intensity would suit me?
• Can you write a letter approving bodywork therapy for me?

Therapies based on diet

• Should I see a dietitian or a nutritionist?
• Are there any general dietary changes I should make?
• What can I eat to improve my digestion and bowel movements?
• Are there any vitamin, mineral or nutritional supplements that could help manage specific side effects or that I should take?
• Are there any foods or supplements I should definitely have, or definitely avoid, during and after cancer treatment?

Therapies using herbs and plants

• Are there any herbs that you would recommend for me to try during or after cancer treatment?
• What dose should I take? Are there any side effects?
• Are there any herbs I should avoid because of my medicines, surgery or other conventional treatments?
• If I use herbal medicine, when should I take it in relation to my other medicines or conventional treatments? Is it safe to use at the same time or should I take it at a different time?
• Do you think using flower remedies or homeopathy would benefit me? Are there any side effects?