White House Commission Examines Research on Complementary Cancer Therapies

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“Within 5 to 10 years, complementary therapies will be a part of the care in every major hospital and clinic across the country,” predicted James Gordon, M.D., clinical professor of psychiatry at the Georgetown University School of Medicine in Washington, D.C. Gordon is chair of the White House Commission on Complementary and Alternative Medicine Policy.

The 19-member commission is charged with developing legislative, administrative, and public policy recommendations to maximize the benefits of complementary and alternative medicine for Americans. “If we are going to hold complementary and alternative therapies to an appropriate standard of accountability, we need to invest in research so health care professionals and consumers can make informed judgments about the appropriate use of these services,” President Clinton stated upon appointing the chair and first 10 commissioners.

At a recent commission meeting to review the latest research in complementary and alternative medicine, Jeffrey D. White, M.D., director of the National Cancer Institute’s Office of Cancer Complementary and Alternative Medicine, highlighted two NCI-coordinated phase III clinical trials. Both trials are funded by the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Complementary and Alternative Medicine.