Bridging The Gap: Integrative Oncology And The Practice Of Traditional Chinese Medicine

Book excerpt: The book's inherent value, currently, is in its uniqueness. There are few books on Integrative Oncology (IO). There are few books on the entirety of traditional Chinese medicine in the treatment of cancer. There are even fewer, if any, books that deal with the topics of Integrative Oncology and the use of traditional Chinese medicine as a whole in the treatment of people with cancer. While very broad and deep topics, this makes for a varied audience of interest that includes not just the TCM practitioner or student, but Western health practitioners and patients as well as laypeople interested in the topic of oncology.For those interested in the topic of IO, it gives one of the few non-biased, honest and critical views of the state of IO in contrast to what is promoted by various institutions and societies.For the Western health practitioner and/or patient, many of whom are completely unfamiliar with TCM and how it works or can be used, it provides information on the breadth of TCM and how it can be applied in various ways to help improve outcomes.For the TCM practitioner or student, it provides much needed information on how to go about caring for a patient with cancer to include clinical pearls and important Western medical information and terminology.