Sage Palliative Medicine & Chronic Care

This episode features  Dr Bridget Candy and Dr Megan Armstrong (Marie Curie Palliative Care Research Department, Division of Psychiatry, University College London, London, UK)      Conventional therapies are not always sufficient to provide satisfactory relief of symptoms to those at an advanced stage of a disease. Evidence on the effectiveness of complementary therapies improving the well-being of people with advanced diseases is uncertain; however, palliative care services often offer such therapies as a way to reduce stress and promote relaxation. This systematic review of qualitative studies found cancer patients (irrespective of disease stage) viewed complementary therapies as providing a sense of physical and psychological well-being. Participants with advanced cancer perceived an improvement in their physical and psychological well-being during and after the complementary therapy session. Participants with advanced cancer experienced a form of escapism or living in the moment that took away their worri