Complementary and Alternative Medicine for Patients

Complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) is any medical and health care systems, practices, or products that are not thought of as standard medical care.

• Standard treatments are based on scientific evidence from research studies.
• Complementary medicine refers to treatments that are used with standard medical treatments, like using acupuncture to help with side effects of cancer treatment.
• Alternative medicine refers to treatments that are used instead of standard medical treatments.
• Integrative medicine is a total approach to care that combines standard medical treatment with the CAM practices that have been shown to be safe and effective.

Although claims made by CAM treatment providers about the benefits of the treatments can sound promising, we do not know how safe many CAM treatments are or how well they work. If you are using or considering using a complementary or alternative therapy, you should talk with your doctor or nurse. Some CAM therapies may interfere with standard treatment or even be harmful. See our overview on CAM for more information.

NCI has evidence-based PDQ information summaries for the integrative, alternative, and complementary therapies listed below.

Summaries Being Regularly Updated

These summaries are reviewed and updated to reflect findings from recent research.

Acupuncture (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Aromatherapy With Essential Oils (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Black Cohosh (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Cancer Therapy Interactions With Foods and Dietary Supplements (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Cannabis and Cannabinoids (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Coenzyme Q10 (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Curcumin (Curcuma, Turmeric) and Cancer (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Essiac/Flor Essence (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Intravenous Vitamin C (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Medicinal Mushrooms (PDQ®)
patient | health professional

Mistletoe Extracts (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Prostate Cancer, Nutrition, and Dietary Supplements (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Summaries No Longer Being Updated

These summaries are no longer being updated. No ongoing studies are being conducted for these topics. The summaries are provided for reference purposes only.

714-X (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Antineoplastons (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Cancell/Cantron/Protocel (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Cartilage (Bovine and Shark) (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Gerson Therapy (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Gonzalez Regimen (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Hydrazine Sulfate (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Laetrile/Amygdalin (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Milk Thistle (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Newcastle Disease Virus (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

PC-SPES (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional

Selected Vegetables/Sun's Soup (PDQ®)
patient  |  health professional