Oncologists' and naturopaths' nutrition beliefs and practices

PURPOSE: Despite the widespread use of complementary and alternative therap ies by persons with cancer, little is known about how the understandings of complementary and alternative practitioners of these therapies compare wit h those of conventional physicians. The:broad,purpose of this research was, thus, to explore the beliefs of physicians and complementary and alternati ve health practitioners, their use of scientific and other types of evidenc e, and their counseling practices. The specific issue addressed was the bel iefs and practices: of oncologists and naturopaths regarding the role of di et in breast cancer prevention and treatment. DESCRIPTION OF STUDY: A qualitative research design was used, involving in- depth semistructured-interviews with 10 oncologists and 11 naturopaths; Int erviews were tape-recorded, transcribed verbatim, and analyzed using: quali tative method. RESULTS: The oncologists:believed that there is little evidence of a role f or diet in breast cancer prevention and treatment, citing the: lack of evid ence from randomized controlled trials. They reported : that they provide o nly general advice on healthy eating to patients. The naturopath,F believed that diet is strongly implicated in breast cancer development, prevention, and treatment. They justified this belief by using scientific-evidence fro m a variety of types of studies, logic or common sense, and their clinical experiences. Naturopaths reported that they provide patients with specific: suggestions for foods:to avoid or to emphasize in diets. CLINICAL IMPLICATIONS;The differences in the advice provided by; onologists and naturopaths; are associated with different decision-making or knowledg e construction systems. Educating patients about these differences will hel p patients: to make more informed healthcare choices.