Homeopathy for breast cancer treatment towards Hindu women

Abstract

This study was intended to reveal the facts regarding homeopathy in the breast cancer treatment for Hindu women in Buleleng regency. Through qualitative research methods, phenomenology theory, power and knowledge relation, health seeking behavior, and the theory of health believe and explanatory model can reveal the reasons underlying the homeopathy occurrence in the breast cancer treatment, i.e., low medical awareness, accumulated awareness of praxis, and chemotherapy, confidence and treatment behaviors. Homeopathic practices in the breast cancer treatment included Balian/shaman (Balinese spiritual) as a traditional Balinese homeopath, breast cancer etiology, disease diagnosis, preliminary therapy, core therapy, and advanced therapy, and cure categories. Homeopathy in the breast cancer treatment has implications for the sustainability of the traditional Balinese treatment culture; implicates the patient in three ways, e.g., the delay and increased stage of cancer, giving psychic comfort to the patient without positive effects for healing, and providing psychic comfort as well as positive effects for healing; has medical implications as the antithesis of medical systems, media of reflection and instruction for the medical, and the desire emergence for some medical circles to combine medical and nonmedical.