Análise da utilização de fitoterápicos por pacientes oncológicos em Santa Cruz do Sul.

Abstract

Cancer is the result of a pathological process where tumor cells proliferate abnormally, so that they can invade tissues and infiltrate. Because it is a very aggressive disease, its treatment is based on a set of therapies such as surgery, radiotherapy, hormone therapy and chemotherapy. In this way the chemotherapeutic treatment acts directly or indirectly in the DNA of the neoplastic cells through medicines used by the patient. However, these causes unpleasant effects to individuals such as nausea, vomiting, diarrhea, mucositis, alopecia and pain. In this way complementary therapy contributes to minimize these symptoms, resulting in a better quality of life and, consequently, an improvement in drug treatment. objective to estimate the prevalence of herbal use by individuals diagnosed with cancer, as well as to identify the profile of these individuals and which are the main medicinal plants used by them. This is a descriptive, cross-sectional study conducted from June to August 2017 in the city of Santa Cruz do Sul, RS, Brazil. For this purpose, a questionnaire was applied to patients with questions related to the investigation of socio-demographic data , epidemiological and information about the use of herbal and phytotherapeutic plants. The collected data were analyzed through tables in excel, statistical analyzes were performed using SPSS software (IBM® SPSS® for Windows, version 20.0) and analysis of variance (ANOVA). Fifty-four patients (53.7%), age 61 (60%) and high school education (37%) predominated. Regarding the diagnosis of cancer cases, the most prevalent type among the patients of the clinic under investigation is colorectal cancer (27.8%). The most used plants were Camomila (Matricaria chamomila L.) (40.7%), Marcela (Achyrocline satureioides) (18.5%), Malva (Malva sylvestrisL.) (13.0%), Boldo (Peumus boldus) (11.1%) and Maçã (Malus sp.). Of the patients who used it, 53.7% did not mention it to the doctor and the main way of obtaining it was through supermarkets 40.7%. Therefore, it is seen that the preparation of these patients is necessary for a safe and rational use, as well as, the instruction of the health professional to transmit the correct information.