Complementary therapy used by Hispanic women during treatment for breast cancer.

The purposes of this study are to assess Hispanic women's use of complementary interventions during breast cancer treatment and delineate the association between the most burdensome side effects and the most frequently used complementary and alternative medicine (CAM). The researchers examined both descriptive statistics and correlational relationships between side effects and CAM. Data were collected from a convenience sample (N = 125).

Pilot study of a structured aerobic exercise program for Hispanic women during treatment for early-stage breast cancer.

A 5-15 pound weight gain is not unusual for women undergoing breast cancer treatment. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the feasibility of a structured exercise intervention during treatment in a predominately Hispanic population of women.

A test of the self-help model and use of complementary and alternative medicine among Hispanic women during treatment for breast cancer.

Purpose/objectives: To describe the relationships in Braden's Self-Help Model of side-effect burden to uncertainty, complementary and alternative medicine (CAM), self-care, and quality of life (QOL) in Hispanic women during breast cancer treatment.

Design: Descriptive, correlational; convenience sample; cross-sectional design.

Setting: An outpatient oncology clinic in a public setting of a metropolitan community in southern Texas.

Review and critique of the literature of complementary and alternative therapy use among Hispanic/Latino women with breast cancer.

Healthcare providers often care for patients who use complementary and alternative therapy (CAT). Despite recent advances in cross-cultural research, little is known about how Hispanic/Latino women being treated for breast cancer use CAT to manage the disease and the side effects of treatment. A woman's cultural heritage, education, healthcare beliefs, degree of acculturation, and socioeconomic factors influence her decision to use CAT and the choice of a specific CAT.

Pyridostigmine bromide and the long-term subjective health status of a sample of over 700 male Reserve Component Gulf War era veterans.

Data from a 1996-1997 survey of approximately 700 Reserve Component male veterans indicate that the consumption of pyridostigmine bromide pills, used as a pretreatment for potential exposure to the nerve agent Soman, was a significant predictor of declines in reported subjective health status after the war, even after controlling for a number of other possible factors. Reported reactions to vaccines and other medications also predicted declines in subjective health. While higher military rank generally predicted better health during and after the war, educational attainment, minority status, number of days in theater, and age generally did not predict changes in subjective health.

Self-reported changes in subjective health and anthrax vaccination as reported by over 900 Persian Gulf War era veterans.

A 1999 study of United Kingdom servicemembers by Unwin, et al. recently found significant relationships between anthrax and other vaccinations, reactions to those vaccines, and later health problems for male current or former active military Gulf War veterans. Likewise, in 2000 Steele and in 1998 Gilroy found possible adverse effects of vaccinations on Gulf War veterans.