title: The effect of complementary and alternative medicine on quality of life, depression, anxiety, and fatigue levels among cancer patients during active oncology treatment: phase II study.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  During the past decade, there has been growing interest in complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) among cancer patients and it is being integrated more frequently within conventional cancer centers. The long-term effect of mind-body therapies on quality of life (QoL), depression, anxiety, and fatigue was tested prospectively in this study.
  
  
  METHODS
  Cancer patients who received six weekly sessions of CAM during their oncological treatments participated in the study. The Hospital Anxiety and Depression Scale (HADS), Brief Fatigue Inventory (BFI) and QoL-EORTC-C30 were completed during the intervention and follow-up period.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Over a two-year period, 163 patients entered the study, 135 of whom completed all six CAM sessions. An improvement was demonstrated in the median of BFI from 4.8 to 3.9 (p < 0.001), HADS-Anxiety from 8 to 7 (p < 0.001) and HADS-Depression from 7 to 6 (p < 0.001) after 12 weeks. In addition, the median of global QoL improved from 50 to 67 (p < 0.001), and a significant improvement was noticed in several parameters on the functioning and symptoms scales of the QoL-EORTC-C30.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Cancer patients who completed six weekly sessions of CAM improved significantly on measured outcomes, regardless of their demographic characteristics.
authors.affiliation: Division of Oncology, Rambam Health Care Campus, POB 9602, Haifa, 31096, Israel, g_barsela@rambam.health.gov.il.
authors.forename: Gil
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Bar-Sela
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Danos
authors.forename: Bella
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Visel
authors.forename: Tanya
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Mashiach
authors.forename: Inbal
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Mitnik
mesh_terms: D001007:Anxiety / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D000529:Complementary Therapies / Q000379:methods*; D003863:Depression / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005221:Fatigue / Q000209:etiology / Q000628:therapy*; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D008875:Middle Aged; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000523:psychology* / Q000628:therapy*; D011788:Quality of Life