Traditional healers and perceptions of the causes and treatment of cancer.

The observation that some Nigerian patients use alternative health care services when they perceive that one medical system has failed them provided the impetus for this survey. The purpose of the survey was to understand why some Nigerian patients rely on traditional healers for cure of cancer by exploring the perceptions of Igbo traditional healers from Anambra State of Nigeria about the causes and treatment of cancer. Implications of the different meanings of illness and disease to patients and physicians provided the theoretical framework for understanding the cultural context of the study. Findings have ethical, moral, and cultural implications for professional nursing practice, education, and research.