Palliative Care News and Research

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Palliative care is an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problem associated with life-threatening illness, through the prevention and relief of suffering by means of early identification and impeccable assessment and treatment of pain and other problems, physical, psychosocial and spiritual.

NCCN introduces new global resource to improve thyroid cancer care in low- and middle-income countries

The National Comprehensive Cancer Network® (NCCN®) is introducing a new global resource to improve thyroid cancer care in low- and middle-income countries at the upcoming World Congress on Thyroid Cancer, in London. During the event, NCCN Senior Vice President and Chief Medical Officer, Wui-Jin Koh, MD, will present on NCCN's ongoing global work to define and advance high-quality, high-value, patient-centered cancer care.

14 Jun 2023

Massage therapists ease the pain of hospice patients — but aren’t easy to find

Ilyse Streim views massage for people in hospice care as “whispering to the body through touch.”

8 Jun 2023

New collaboration wins award to investigate non-invasive treatment of uterine fibroids

A collaboration among Dr. Frank Greenway of Pennington Biomedical Research Center, Dr. Beverly Ogden of Woman's Hospital in partnership with LSU, and the University of Louisiana at Lafayette, was named as one of three award recipients at the Baton Rouge Health-Tech Catalyst Pitch Night.

2 Jun 2023

ICUconnect helped doctors to reduce unmet palliative care needs of critically ill patients

In a randomized controlled trial, ICUconnect helped ICU physicians to reduce unmet palliative care needs of critically ill patients and their families better than standard care did, according to research published at the ATS 2023 International Conference.

23 May 2023

Study reveals staggering toll of being Black in America: 1.6M excess deaths over 22 years

Research has long shown that Black people live sicker lives and die younger than white people.

16 May 2023

Addition of palliative care services to cancer patients having surgery does not provide benefits

One of the most important advances in palliative care in oncology over the past 15 years has been the recognition that palliative care specialists can improve cancer patients' outcomes well before their end of life.

10 May 2023

HIPEC: A promising treatment for certain patients with Stage IV abdominal cancer

A technique that delivers high doses of heated chemotherapy directly to the abdominal cavity is a promising treatment for certain patients with Stage IV cancer.

5 May 2023

Medical cannabis soothes cancer pain

Study evaluated the safety and effectiveness of medical cannabis in reducing pain and concurrent medications in patients with cancer. The results suggest that medical cannabis is a safe and effective complementary treatment for pain relief in patients with cancer.

4 May 2023

Study demonstrates the feasibility of implementing geriatric surgery quality program in hospitals

A national pilot program designed to improve outcomes for elderly surgical patients is scalable and can be implemented in a wide range of hospital types-;from community hospitals to urban academic medical centers, according to a study published this week in the Journal of the American College of Surgeons

27 Apr 2023

Practicing integrative neuro-oncology to improve care for brain tumor patients

The University of Cincinnati's Soma Sengupta, MD, PhD, published an article in the Journal of Neuro-Oncology April 25 discussing her journey and approach to practicing integrative neuro-oncology.

26 Apr 2023

New approach to primary palliative care increases uptake of advance care planning among patients with advanced cancer

New research in the April 2023 issue of JNCCN-;Journal of the National Comprehensive Cancer Network finds that specially trained oncology infusion room nurses can improve advance care planning (ACP) for patients with advanced cancer.

4 Apr 2023

Fatigue is common among older adults, and it has many possible causes

Nothing prepared Linda C. Johnson of Indianapolis for the fatigue that descended on her after a diagnosis of stage 4 lung cancer in early 2020.

4 Apr 2023

Growing use of immunotherapy linked to increase in Medicare spending for outpatient terminal cancer care

A new study finds that recent increases in Medicare spending on outpatient cancer care at the end of patients' lives were driven almost entirely by a type of treatment given to fewer than 1 in 5 patients.

27 Feb 2023

New evidence of four distinct pain trajectories in nursing home residents

Despite awareness that pain is common in nursing home residents, there has been minimal attention focused on how this pain changes over time.

27 Feb 2023

Palliative care not likely to reduce psychological distress

Palliative care -; a specialized medical care focused on quality of life for people with a serious illness such as cancer or heart failure -; isn't likely to reduce psychological distress, according to a Rutgers study.

24 Feb 2023

Study identifies placental growth factor as a biomarker for vascular cognitive impairment

Measuring a key blood molecule may help doctors diagnose whether or how much impaired blood flow to a patient's brain is contributing to dementia or cognitive problems, according to a new study led by a UCLA Health researcher.

23 Feb 2023

Study sheds light on imbalance in palliative care for non-cancer patients

Hospices and palliative care are the final chapter of life, where people spend their final days, ideally in comfort and peace.

16 Feb 2023

More Californians are dying at home. Another covid ‘new normal’?

The covid-19 pandemic has spurred a surge in the proportion of Californians who are dying at home rather than in a hospital or nursing home, accelerating a slow but steady rise that dates back at least two decades.

26 Jan 2023

Diagnosis and treatment of people with long COVID

About 1.4 million people in Canada have been affected by long COVID after infection, or suspected infection, with SARS-CoV-2. A new trio of practice articles in CMAJ (Canadian Medical Association Journal) aims to help clinicians diagnose, assess and treat people with long COVID.

18 Jan 2023

Machine learning-based behavioral intervention can improve end-of-life cancer care

Electronic nudges delivered to health care clinicians based on a machine learning algorithm that predicts mortality risk quadrupled rates of conversations with patients about their end-of-life care preferences, according to the long-term results of a randomized clinical trial published by Penn Medicine investigators in JAMA Oncology today.

12 Jan 2023