A Survey of Health Food Use and Patient Satisfaction among Patients Undergoing Cancer Pharmacotherapy

: This study aimed to clarify the situation of use of health foods by patients and the level of satisfaction of patients in order to make use of information on cases where patients undergoing cancer medication therapy use health foods. Between May 7, 2018 and June 29, 2018, we conducted a questionnaire survey of patients with progressive cancer who were undergoing cancer chemotherapy at Ogaki Municipal Hospital. In addition, we conducted a multivariate analysis of patients who were using health foods and those who were not. The questionnaire items included the objectives of use, product effectiveness and satisfaction, and QOL. The rate of health food use was 81/281 (29.5%). The primary objectives of use were, "to maintain health" (29.8%) and "to alleviate symptoms" (24.0%). The primary sources of information about health foods were "a friend" (50.6%) and "TV" (13.5%). The satisfaction level was 0-3 points in 8.3% of patients, 4-6 points in 38.1% of patients, and 7-10 points in 53.6% of patients. For "stage of illness (recurrence)," the odds ratio was 1.810 (95% CI, 1.040-3.150; p=0.035), and for "QOL value," the odds ratio was 2.210 (95% CI, 1.220-4.020; p=0.009), indicating that these factors had a significant influence on health food use. Health foods tended to be used in patients who had recurring cancer with low QOL and various symptoms, and friends and other people close to the patient had a large influence on the patient's decision. It was clear that the patients' satisfaction level was high.