Bill Helm, PCOM-SD Faculty, Published on AlternativeMedicine on “Cancer-Related Therapies That Belong in the Mainstream”

Bill Helm, who teaches qigoing, tui na, taiji, and Taoist philosophy at PCOM-SD, was published on AlternativeMedicine.com on complementary and alternative therapies related to cancer that belong in the mainstream, such as massage therapy, acupuncture, and meditation. “We as medical professionals can—and should—be doing more for patients undergoing treatment for cancer and experiencing pain as a result,” says Bill. “A full third of cancer patients experience pain related to their condition [..] and that proportion leaps to two-thirds when [people] are terminally ill. It’s time we take more seriously the need to alleviate this pain, and intrinsic to that is taking seriously an integrative approach to medical care, and the availability of complementary and alternative therapies with a proven capacity to provide relief.”

Bill discussed complementary trealatments that can address the pain associated with cancer in an integrative way, including guided imagery, support groups, acupuncture, massage and other forms of touch therapy. Western medicine plays the role of fighting cancer directly, but complementary methods can lessen the suffering of our patients, both physically and mentally, with few to no risks of dangerous or uncomfortable side effects–unlike most treatments for cancer itself.