Background: The extent of alternative therapy use in brain tumor patients i
s unknown, but it may be frequent and seems important to those who use it.
Objective: To characterize alternative therapy use in brain tumor patients.
Methods: Prospective questionnaire-based survey of 167 brain tumor patient
s who attended a cancer center in Southern Alberta. Physicians completed fo
rms describing clinical information such as disease status. Results: The re
sponse rate was 91% (167/184). Twenty-four percent of patients used alterna
tive therapies and often more than one therapy at the same time. Motivation
to use these therapies was influenced by the desire for patient-focused tr
eatment and a perceived need to take charge. Alternative therapy users were
younger (p = 0.04) and more likely to be on sick or disability leave (p =
0.02), to come in for repeat visits (p = 0.05), and to have received conven
tional treatments (p = 0.01). Users tended to have lower quality of life wi
th respect to physical well-being, functional well-being, and a specific br
ain tumor subscale. Clinical variables, such as disease status, tumor type,
and Karnofsky Performance Score, were not related to alternative therapy u
se. Major changes in number and types of alternative therapy use occurred d
uring the study period. No major side effects or tumor responses were seen
with alternative therapies. Conclusions: Alternative therapy use in brain t
umor patients is common and may reflect unmet patient needs with respect to
their cancer care within the current model of health care delivery.