Patient Trust Through the Lens of Integrative Oncology

Trust is a central theme in the communication between patients and oncology healthcare practitioners, especially for those patients who are using traditional, alternative, or complementary medicine. These patients are often reluctant to disclose the use of these practices, increasing the gap in communication with their healthcare practitioners, especially when they are taking place within a context which is alternative or separate from conventional oncology treatments. In this chapter we examine the role of trust (and mistrust) in the Integrative Oncology setting, understanding the interactions taking place between patients and their oncology healthcare providers. A number of clinical settings will be presented, from a traditional and alternative medicine approach, provided separately from conventional care; to that of integrative medicine, in which evidence-based complementary medicine treatments are provided within a conventional oncology setting, as part of the supportive and palliative care service. All of the clinical cases presented in this chapter fictional are.