title: Complementary medicine in cancer care: adding a therapy dog to the team.
abstract: Animal-assisted therapy, including visits from certified therapy dogs, offer a valuable and often underutilized resource for addressing unmet needs in cancer patients. Prospective research studies have documented symptomatic benefits for reducing pain, psychological distress, and fatigue in a variety of patient populations, including cancer patients. Utilizing consistent policies minimizes patient risk and infection control concerns associated with animal visits.
authors.affiliation: University of Pittsburgh, PA 15237, USA. dawnpainmd@yahoo.com
authors.forename: Dawn A
authors.initials: DA
authors.lastname: Marcus
mesh_terms: D000223:Adaptation, Psychological; D056447:Animal Assisted Therapy; D000818:Animals; D000529:Complementary Therapies / Q000458:organization & administration*; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D004285:Dogs; D005221:Fatigue / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000150:complications* / Q000523:psychology; D016522:Oncology Service, Hospital / Q000458:organization & administration*; D010146:Pain / Q000209:etiology; D059408:Pain Management / Q000379:methods*; D057805:Pets