What to Know About the Information and Disclaimer on the CISS Website

Updated

The Cancer Information & Support Society (CISS) at ciss.org.au publishes information about alternative cancer therapies, evaluates conventional therapies, and offers personal support to people who choose their own treatment programs. Its disclaimer is explicit: you should always consult a medical practitioner or specialist familiar with both conventional and alternative cancer therapies who practises evidence-based medicine generally, or informed choice in particular, before considering any relevant cancer therapy. The site also states that opinions expressed on the website belong to the authors of the articles and are not necessarily shared by CISS. In practice, this means the site is a starting point for questions and support, not a substitute for a qualified clinician who knows your case.

What the disclaimer actually says

The disclaimer on the site contains two distinct warnings, and they do different work:

  • Consult a qualified practitioner. The site directs readers to a medical practitioner or medical specialist who is familiar with both conventional and alternative cancer therapies and who practises evidence-based medicine in general, or informed choice in particular.
  • Attribute opinions correctly. All opinions expressed on the website are those of the article authors, not necessarily the position of CISS as an organisation.

The second point matters when you read a specific article. A single author's view on a therapy is not the same as a consensus position, and the site itself flags that distinction.

Why CISS frames information this way

CISS describes itself as independent, stating it is not influenced or funded by any government or private organisation with vested interests. It says it survives on membership fees, donations, and bequests from people it has helped, plus unconditional corporate philanthropy.

That funding model shapes how the information is presented. CISS says it provides detailed information only to members, both individual and corporate, and invites people to join to receive what it calls detailed, comprehensive, unbiased, evidence-based information on cancer therapies, along with ongoing support. So the public pages give you the philosophy and the disclaimer; the detailed material sits behind membership.

The treatment philosophy behind the information

Understanding the philosophy helps you read the site's content critically. CISS states several positions:

  • It believes cancer is a systemic disease and that emotional factors play a significant part in its cause.
  • It believes healing comes from within, and that treatment is what other people do to help.
  • It suggests people with cancer take control of their health and decide their own treatment program after being given accurate, unbiased, evidence-based options.
  • It believes effective treatment should deal with body, mind, emotions, and spirit, and supports people in their chosen program.

It also applies a "first do no harm" principle, arguing that most conventional cancer therapies are invasive and some can cause serious harm, so they should only be used in immediately life-threatening situations and where there is proven evidence they do more good than harm. On evidence, CISS says treatments should be based on trial results showing the intervention does more good than harm, and cites a Cochrane analysis of mammography for breast cancer screening that it says concluded the practice results in treatments that do more harm than good.

These are the site's stated positions. They are not neutral summaries of mainstream oncology, and readers should treat them as one perspective among others.

How to use the site responsibly

If you are using ciss.org.au to inform a treatment decision, a few practical steps follow from the disclaimer itself:

  1. Treat articles as author opinions. Check who wrote a piece and whether it reflects CISS's position or an individual view.
  2. Bring what you find to a clinician. The disclaimer specifically points to a practitioner familiar with both conventional and alternative therapies who practises evidence-based medicine or informed choice. That is the person positioned to evaluate the material against your diagnosis.
  3. Separate support from treatment claims. CISS offers personal support in person, by phone, or by email, and describes extra skills for managing a chosen program. Support and information are not the same as clinical treatment.
  4. Expect a membership boundary. Detailed information is described as available to members, so some content will not be visible without joining.

What the site does not tell you

The available material does not state prices, membership costs, or whether joining requires payment beyond the reference to membership fees. It also does not provide a full list of the therapies covered or the evidence behind each one on the public pages. If cost or scope matters to your decision, that is a question to raise directly with CISS rather than assume.

The core takeaway is straightforward: CISS presents itself as an independent source of alternative and conventional therapy information with a specific philosophy, and its own disclaimer tells you to verify anything you read with a qualified practitioner before acting on it. Use the site to generate questions and find support, and use a clinician familiar with both approaches to help you decide.