Adjunctive Chinese herbal medicine associated with symptom improvement in 83 breast cancer patients receiving Western medicine.

BackgroundBreast cancer therapies effectively control tumors but frequently impose substantial symptom burden and impair quality of life (QOL). In integrative oncology practice, traditional Chinese medicine (TCM) is commonly used as adjunctive supportive care. We evaluated associations between adjunctive scientific Chinese herbal medicine (CHM), constitution-related symptoms, and QOL in a real-world breast cancer cohort.MethodsIn this prospective observational study, 83 patients receiving Western medicine (WM) were followed for 3–6 months and categorized as WM alone or WM plus adjunctive CHM. Baseline imbalance was addressed using inverse probability of treatment weighting (IPTW), and repeated measures were analyzed using generalized estimating equation (GEE) models to estimate associations between CHM exposure and improvements in BCQ and WHOQOL-BREF outcomes.ResultsAfter IPTW adjustment, adjunctive CHM use was associated with higher odds of improvement in BCQ symptoms including fatigue (OR 1.92, 95% CI 1.18–3.12), dry eyes (OR 2.15, 95% CI 1.27–3.65), and hot flushes (OR 1.87, 95% CI 1.10–3.19), compared with WM alone. Associations were also observed in WHOQOL-BREF, including reduced interference from physical pain (OR 2.08, 95% CI 1.24–3.50) and improved perception of physical environment (OR 1.69, 95% CI 1.03–2.76). These symptom patterns are consistent with traditional Chinese medicine descriptions commonly characterized as qi–yin deficiency with stasis-stagnation.ConclusionIn this real-world integrative oncology setting, adjunctive scientific CHM use was associated with improvements in constitution-related symptoms and selected QOL domains. These findings suggest a potential supportive role for CHM in breast cancer care; however, causal inference cannot be established.