( CNN ) -- Steve Jobs had a long run with a rare form of cancer ( a pancreatic neuroendocrine tumor ) that is sometimes curable by early surgery . While I was not his physician and do n't have access to the details of his illness or its treatment , assertions that his use of alternative medicine shortened his life strike me as uninformed . No one knows how long he would have survived or what his quality of life would have been had he opted for immediate surgery and used only conventional treatment . For the past 40 years I have studied alternative and complementary therapies to learn which of them might usefully be combined with conventional approaches to develop a safer , more effective and more cost-effective system of care -- the result is the integrative medicine that I practice and teach . In the course of these investigations , I have looked at many alternative cancer treatments and found none of them to be effective . None withstand scientific scrutiny . Yet I find our standard cancer treatments to be incomplete and sometimes more harmful than beneficial . In the case of pancreatic cancer , they usually offer minimal extended survival , often at the expense of reduced quality of life . In October , 2010 , I traveled in China to learn more about efforts there to integrate Western and Chinese medicine . My hosts took me to Guang'anmen Hospital in Beijing , a very large modern medical center devoted entirely to integrative medicine . Its largest department is oncology . Every cancer patient there gets appropriate surgery , chemotherapy and radiation therapy , as well as sophisticated herbal therapy designed to reduce toxicity and increase efficacy of those treatments , to strengthen body defenses against cancer and enhance quality of life . Acupuncture and nutrition are also part of the hospital 's integrative cancer treatment . Seeing the large number of successful outcomes there made me sad that few American cancer patients can access this kind of care . What most impressed me is that it is supervised by fully trained oncologists in an academic medical center . Cancer centers in the United States that claim they offer `` integrative '' care stick to the safest complementary services -- massage , stress reduction , counseling . They would n't let a Chinese herb on their premises -- even a totally safe one like astragalus ( from the root of Astragalus membranaceous ) that helps protect bone marrow from the toxic effects of some chemotherapy agents . American oncologists commonly tell patients to avoid all dietary supplements and natural remedies while undergoing treatment and to eat whatever they want . That 's not good enough . If cancer is confined to one part of the body and is accessible , surgery is usually curative , and it would be foolish not to use it . Unfortunately , by the time many cancers are first detected , they have already spread from their point of origin . Chemotherapy and radiotherapy may be the best treatments we have in those cases , but they are crude approaches that damage normal cells as well as malignant ones , especially in sensitive tissues of the immune system . I 'm sure they will eventually be replaced by targeted , individualized therapies that cause less collateral damage . In the meantime , much can be done to improve our management of cancer . I would urge patients and families not to reject surgery , chemotherapy , or radiotherapy but to seek and demand integrative treatment . The Arizona Center for Integrative Medicine that I direct has graduated a number of oncologists from its intensive fellowship training ; a goal of the center is to develop formal training in integrative oncology . The Society for Integrative Oncology will hold its 8th annual international conference in Cleveland next month ; it is co-sponsored by Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine . This is the future . Again , I do n't know enough about Steve Jobs ' cancer or the treatments he used to comment on them specifically . I hope he was lucky enough to find an integrative oncologist to help him with the tough decisions that all cancer patients must make about the recommendations they get , both from conventional doctors and others . I wish that all cancer patients could partner with integrative oncologists to guide them through the maze of confusing options , avoid fraudulent treatments and scams and make use of all safe and effective therapies to eliminate tumors , prevent recurrences and preserve quality of life . By demanding integrative oncology practitioners and facilities , consumers can speed their appearance . The opinions expressed in this commentary are solely those of Andrew Weil .
Andrew Weil says he ca n't say if Steve Job 's treatment choices shortened his life . He says in his studies he has found no alternative therapy for cancer that is effective . But , he says , alternative therapies can help strengthen body during cancer care . Weil : Integrative medicine should be essential part of cancer care .