What are alternative treatments for exocrine pancreatic cancer?
Acupuncture or hypnotherapy may be used in addition to standard therapies to help relieve the pain associated with pancreatic cancer. Because of the poor prognosis associated with pancreatic cancer, some patients may try special diets with vitamin supplements, certain exercise programs, or unconventional treatments not yet approved by the FDA. Patients should always inform their doctors of any alternative treatments they are using as they could interfere with standard therapies. As of the year 2000, the National Cancer Institute (NCI) is funding phase III clinical trials of a controversial treatment for pancreatic cancer that involves the use of supplemental pancreatic enzymes (to digest cancerous cells) and coffee enemas (to stimulate the liver to detoxify the cancer). These theories remain unproven and the study is widely criticized in the medical community. It remains to been seen whether this method of treatment has any advantage over the standard chemotherapeutic regimen in prolon
