Don't stop proper treatment to try folk remedies or health supplements

Cost

Free, and you save the money you would have spent on supplements. It takes no time. The hard part is holding firm when others keep urging you to try.

What you get

Two studies in U.S. cancer registry data looked at patients with breast, prostate, lung and colorectal cancer that had not spread and could have been treated. The first looked at people who used only alternative therapy and did none of surgery, chemotherapy, radiotherapy or hormone therapy. Compared with matched patients who received proper treatment, their risk of death was 2.5 times as high (HR 2.50, 95% CI 1.88–3.27, about 1.5 times higher). For breast cancer it was 5.68 times (3.22–10.04), for lung cancer 2.17 times (1.42–3.32), and for colorectal cancer 4.57 times (1.66–12.61). The second study looked at people who used complementary therapy alongside proper treatment. The share who refused surgery was 7.0% versus 0.1%, and refusing chemotherapy was 34.1% versus 3.2%. Refusing radiotherapy was 53.0% versus 2.3%, and refusing hormone therapy was 33.7% versus 2.8%. 5-year survival was 82.2% versus 86.6%, and the risk of death was 2.08 times (HR 2.08, 1.50–2.90, about twice as high). Once delay and refusal of treatment were accounted for, complementary therapy itself no longer showed a link to death (HR 1.39, 0.83–2.33). The authors concluded that the extra deaths came from refusing proper treatment. The State Administration for Market Regulation (国家市场监管总局) requires health-food labels to say: "Health food is not a drug and cannot replace drugs in treating disease." The U.S. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH) states that St. John's wort weakens the effect of many drugs, including cyclosporine, which prevents rejection of a transplanted organ, and the blood thinner warfarin.

Notes

Only rated B. Both studies looked only at cancer and followed people through registry data, with no randomized groups, so the people who chose alternative therapy may have differed in other ways too. For the case of stopping medicine for diseases like high blood pressure and diabetes, see §16.1 (take your medicine as prescribed to the end of the course). If you want to try a supplement, tell your doctor in charge first. For whether to spend money on supplements at all, see §6.10 (supplements, herbal pastes and tonics).

Evidence grade

B : Supported by research but without a precise number, or based on small or single studies.

Sources

1. Johnson SB, Park HS, Gross CP, Yu JB (2018). Use of Alternative Medicine for Cancer and Its Impact on Survival. Journal of the National Cancer Institute, 110(1), 121-124. https://doi.org/10.1093/jnci/djx145
2. Johnson SB, Park HS, Gross CP, Yu JB (2018). Complementary Medicine, Refusal of Conventional Cancer Therapy, and Survival Among Patients With Curable Cancers. JAMA Oncology, 4(10), 1375-1381. https://doi.org/10.1001/jamaoncol.2018.2487
3. 国家市场监督管理总局 (2019). 市场监管总局就《保健食品标注警示用语指南》和《保健食品原料目录与保健功能目录管理办法》有关情况举办专题新闻发布会. https://www.samr.gov.cn/tssps/sjdt/tpxw/art/2023/art_4b658b824b1b4b0ba57c09a56cc93aad.html
4. National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (2025). St. John's Wort. https://www.nccih.nih.gov/health/st-johns-wort

Translated from the Chinese original. Original book, section 16, tip 4. This section is about health and medicines. It is general information, not a substitute for a doctor’s diagnosis or prescription. Content may be out of date and rules differ by place. When you actually deal with an agency, a doctor or a court, follow what local officials, doctors and lawyers tell you. Disclaimer