Integrative Medicine Service Chief, Barrie Cassileth (from left), with Gary Deng, K. Simon Yeung, and Kathleen Wesa.
Integrative medicine combines the discipline of modern science with the wisdom of ancient healing. It can transform the physical, emotional, and spiritual dimensions of the lives of people living with chronic or life-threatening illness.
Complementary therapies such as touch therapies, mind-body therapies, acupuncture, nutrition, physical activity and fitness, and dietary supplements are not substitutes for mainstream medical care. But when used in concert with medical treatment they can help alleviate stress, reduce pain and anxiety, manage physical and emotional symptoms, and enhance quality of life.
Our Experts
- Barrie R. Cassileth, PhD
Chief, Integrative Medicine Service
Laurance S. Rockefeller Chair in Integrative Medicine - Gary E. Deng, MD, PhD
- Andrew Vickers, PhD
- K. Simon Yeung, PharmD, MBA, LAc
- Kathleen M. Wesa, MD
Our Approach and Expertise
The guiding principle at Memorial Sloan-Kettering is to offer people with cancer the most effective treatment and the highest quality of care. Through our Integrative Medicine Service, fully trained and certified therapists provide patients with a wide range of complementary therapies. Our therapists have been carefully selected for their experience, their symptom management skills, and their sensitivity to patient needs.
Video
Barrie R. Cassileth, Chief of the Integrative Medicine Service, discusses how complementary therapies can help in cancer care.
(21:00)
Through our award-winning website, About Herbs, Botanicals, and Other Products, the Integrative Medicine Service also collects and disseminates free and thorough information about over-the-counter products and unproven cancer treatments, and their effects in the context of cancer care.
You do not need to be a Memorial Sloan-Kettering patient to take advantage of the services we provide. Even if you are not ill, integrative medicine can help you to increase self-awareness, enhance your well-being, manage symptoms such as osteoporosis and anxiety, and prevent health-related problems. Our outpatient center is open to anyone, including Memorial Sloan-Kettering patients and their family members, those receiving cancer care elsewhere, and members of the community.
