Background: There is limited and insufficient data about the use of alternative treatment among patients with cancer in Saudi Arabia. The present study was aimed at assessing the prevalence, knowledge, and attitude of the use of alternative treatment among patients with cancer in a major tertiary hospital in Saudi Arabia.
Methods: A descriptive cross-sectional study was conducted at the Prince Sultan Military Medical City in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia. An interview questionnaire was employed for data collection. The Statistical Package for Social Sciences version 26 for data analysis. The statistical tests used included descriptive statistics, such as frequencies, percentages, means, and standard deviations, to describe the prevalence of using alternative medicine.
Results: Data were collected from a total of 424 participants, where 161 (38%) of the 424 participants were male, the majority of participants were married (74.8%), and the majority had a moderate monthly income (61.6%). Regarding alternative ways to treat tumours, 40.0% of participants reported employing treatments other than those prescribed by their attending physician. The most popular alternative therapy among these participants was animal excreta, such as camel urine. Regarding the time of alternative method use, 60.0% of individuals reported using them after completing the therapy, whereas 31.3% reported using them upon diagnosis and before beginning the treatment.
Conclusion: A sizeable percentage of people use complementary and alternative medicine, with animal prod ucts being the most often mentioned form of complementary and alternative medicine.
Key words: Patients with cancer, use of alternative treatment, knowledge and attitude, Saudi Arabia.
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