School of Medicine, College of Medicine, Chang Gung University, Taoyuan, Taiwan.
Cancer Nurs. 2011 Nov-Dec;34(6):495-502. doi: 10.1097/NCC.0b013e31820d4da9.
Traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is used worldwide as a complementary and alternative medicine, but little is known about cancer patients' experience when using combination therapy of TCM and conventional medicine.
The goal of this study was to understand the experiences of Taiwanese cancer patients undergoing conventional chemotherapy and using TCM at the same time.
For this qualitative descriptive study, 9 cancer patients (42-63 years old) were interviewed individually and in depth using a semistructured guide. All interviews were audiotaped and transcribed verbatim. Data were concurrently collected and analyzed using a constant comparative method to develop major themes and categories.
Data analysis revealed 3 themes: (1) biomedical aspect: TCM as a supplementary force to conventional medicine, (2) psychological aspect: different beliefs about TCM create different TCM uses, and (3) social aspect: interactions among patients, physicians, and economic issues.
Our study reveals that the phenomenon of using TCM is captured in a biopsychosocial model.
When assessing the issue of TCM use among cancer patients, healthcare providers must take into consideration its biological, psychological, and social aspects.
传统中医（TCM）作为一种补充和替代医学，在全球范围内得到应用，但对于癌症患者同时使用 TCM 和常规医学联合治疗的体验知之甚少。
本研究旨在了解同时接受常规化疗和 TCM 治疗的台湾癌症患者的体验。
本定性描述性研究采用半结构式指南对 9 名癌症患者（42-63 岁）进行了单独和深入的访谈。所有访谈均进行录音并逐字转录。使用恒定比较法同时收集和分析数据，以开发主要主题和类别。
数据分析揭示了 3 个主题：（1）生物医学方面：TCM 作为常规医学的补充力量；（2）心理方面：对 TCM 的不同信念导致不同的 TCM 使用；（3）社会方面：患者、医生和经济问题之间的相互作用。
我们的研究表明，使用 TCM 的现象被纳入了生物-心理-社会模型。
当评估癌症患者使用 TCM 的问题时，医疗保健提供者必须考虑其生物、心理和社会方面。
