Training in Complementary & Alternative Medical Research

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ABSTRACT (Provided by the applicant): Patient utilization of a broad spectrum of Complementary and alternative Medical (CAM) therapies is at the highest level in recent history of this country and continues to increase. However, there is a lack of adequate research providing accurate information to illuminate and validate the efficacy, economy, and safety of CAM therapies. This in turns perpetuates a skepticism about CAM, held by patients, physicians and researchers, which has profound consequences both on the economics and effectiveness of our national health care system. A successful medical system provides patients and physicians with the ability to choose from the largest possible armamentarium of therapeutic and preventative health care regimens that have been proven to be both medically efficacious and cost effective. To continued to move toward such a system, it is vitally important that the panoply of CAM therapeutic regimens be validated scientifically. This will proceed most quickly and efficiently with an interdisciplinary and collaborative research effort carried out by scientists trained both in rigorous research methodology and in CAM. Bastyr University, the nations? leading CAM training institution, has initiated this proposal in order to prepare scientist for careers as research scholars and clinical investigators in the field of CAM. Over a five-year period, this program will train 8 postdoctoral (4 ND, 2 PhD and 2 MD) fellows, each for a period of three years, plus thirty predoctoral students in short term positions. Training opportunities are available from 18 faculty members, representing five preeminent research and educational institutions in Washington State. We have assembled mentors with acknowledged expertise in their fields, with divergent enough backgrounds to provide a breadth of training experiences, and with a common interes in the efficacy of CAM in the treatment of cancer and cancer-related pain. We believe that the combined expertise and commitment of these individuals, in the context of the superlative research environment in Seattle creates a unique opportunity to successfully train scientists who will be able to bring traditional research methods to bear upon CAM related research topics.