Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) utilization among cancer survivors.

Abstract

e20604 Background: We investigated the utilization patterns of traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) among general cancer survivors before and after their cancer diagnosis when compared to normal population. Methods: Using population-based claim database, we identified 87249 cancer survivors diagnosed within 2000-2004 and 87,237 matched controls. We obtained information on TCM utilization 2 years before and after their diagnosis. We quantified the utilization of TCM in two ways: initiation (any use in a specific year) and intensity (visit counts per year). Descriptive analysis was applied to explore the trends in initiation and intensity for all cancer and controls as well as each major cancer sites separately. Results: TCM intensity (mean annual visits, with 95%CI) was increased substantially (23%) for general cancer survivors after diagnosis: from 1.58 (1.55-1.61) for 1~2 years before diagnosis to 1.94 (1.9-1.98) for 2nd years after diagnosis, in contrast to the minor increase (10%) for the control group. For most of the major cancer sites, the initiation rate of TCM among cancer survivors increased before diagnosis then gradually returned to around baseline afterward, whereas the intensity increased gradually after diagnosis. The initiation and intensity for the control groups was relatively stable during the corresponding periods. Conclusions: We found that the initiation of TCM was increased in the pre-diagnostic period and the intensity of TCM gradually increased after diagnosis when compared to normal population. Further research is needed to explore whether TCM, or more broadly CAM, can either serve as a clinical alter or bring additional benefits to these patients.