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Regular, Chinese medicine doctors to talk?

Page last modified on: October 2, 2008
Question from AmberG: Should my regular doctor talk with my Chinese medicine doctor about my treatments? How can I get them to connect?
Answer —Raymond Chang, M.D.: We generally believe it's a good idea to connect, but sometimes it may not be such a good idea. It depends on how well versed your Chinese practitioner is in Western medicine. I don't necessarily believe that making everybody connect is the best thing—sometimes they operate on different planes and it's disastrous.

I have had experience in dealing with Chinese practitioners who discuss the balance of Yin and Yang energy in a patient, versus the oncologists talking about whether someone is hormone-receptor positive or negative. They couldn't understand what one another was talking about. The Chinese practitioner wanted to put the patient on herbs to balance Yin and Yang so the patient feels better. But the Chinese practitioner doesn't know anything about estrogen receptors, and that the goal of the treatment may be to leave the patient a little unbalanced. That's the whole idea. The two find it impossible to communicate because they're talking totally different languages.

On Wednesday, September 21, 2005, our Ask-the-Expert Online Conference was called Traditional Chinese Medicine. Raymond Chang, M.D. and moderator Beth Baughman Dupree, M.D., F.A.C.S. answered your questions about how to discuss Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) with your cancer doctor.

The materials presented in these conferences do not necessarily reflect the views of breastcancer.org. A qualified healthcare professional should be consulted before using any therapeutic product or regimen discussed. All readers should verify all information and data before employing any therapies described here.

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Meet the Experts

Raymond Chang, M.D. is an internationally respected physician-acupuncturist uniquely trained in traditional Chinese medicine as well as contemporary Western medicine, and he is an acknowledged pioneer-specialist in integrative programs for cancer, infertility, and other difficult-to-treat conditions.

Beth Baughman DuPree, M.D., F.A.C.S.Beth Baughman DuPree, M.D., F.A.C.S. is a general surgeon. Her clinical practice is located at Holy Redeemer Hospital and St. Mary Medical Center.

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