Palliative care extends length and quality of life
Sydney Morning Herald
Thursday March 3, 2011
CANCER patients wanting to live for as long as possible should receive palliative care sooner rather than later, as research suggests it could prolong life more effectively than receiving treatment alone.In a finding that could dramatically change doctors' and patients' views of palliative care, the research concluded patients with lung cancer enjoyed much greater quality of life and fewer depressive symptoms if they were referred to palliative care soon after diagnosis rather than in the late stage of their disease.Palliative care aims to improve quality of life for people with serious, progressive illness through careful attention to pain and symptom control, recognition of psychological and spiritual needs and providing support to the patient and their family.The American study split 151 newly diagnosed lung cancer patients into two groups, with one receiving standard treatment and the other receiving treatment with early referral to palliative care within 12 weeks of diagnosis. The median survival time for people in the second group was about three months longer and they reported much better mood and quality of life compared to the other group.Melbourne cancer specialist Ian Haines said the study represented a watershed moment for oncology because many people viewed palliative care as a default option for patients when all other avenues had been exhausted."If early referral for specialist palliative care were an expensive new drug, it would quite appropriately be marketed as a major advance in improving the care of patients with incurable cancer," he wrote last month in The Medical Journal of Australia.Professor Haines said another study recently followed 333 patients with advanced cancer to death. Those who died in hospital experienced more physical and emotional distress than those who died at home with palliative care.Death in hospital was associated with greater grief and more post-traumatic stress for families and friends of patients.Professor Haines said the studies showed that early referral to palliative care could help patients and carers better understand their treatment options near the end of life, reducing debilitating treatments such as chemotherapy and the futile use of finite medical resources.
© 2011 Sydney Morning Herald