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.

Patients with advanced illness should have more options for end-of-life care

End-of-life care for patients with advanced illness is not only emotionally taxing for all involved, but also costly. Conventional models admit patients to hospice or palliative care only if their life expectancy is within a six-month window.

21 Jun 2017

Experts suggest multiple ways to reform hospice organizations

The market for hospice care is growing for both eligible enrollees and providers, yet the quality of care is prone to vary, and many institutions deliver suboptimal service, says Texas A&M University Distinguished Professor of Marketing Leonard Berry.

15 Jun 2017

New approach could potentially prevent muscle wasting in muscular dystrophy and cancer

Monash University's Biomedicine Discovery Institute researchers have collaboratively developed a therapeutic approach that dramatically promotes the growth of muscle mass, which could potentially prevent muscle wasting in diseases including muscular dystrophy and cancer.

14 Jun 2017

Centenarians have lower incidence of chronic illness than people in their 80s and 90s, study shows

Centenarians have a lower incidence of chronic illness than those in their 80s and 90s, according to research from the George Washington University.

8 Jun 2017

SLU scientist discovers cause and potential solution for cancer-related bone pain

In a paper published in the journal Pain, Saint Louis University researcher Daniela Salvemini, Ph.D., reports discovering a key molecular pathway that drives cancer-related bone pain while providing a potential solution with a drug that already is on the market.

8 Jun 2017

Symptom self-reporting web-based tool could be used to help extend oncology patients' lives, study finds

The study funded by the Conquer Cancer Foundation of the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) has found that a simple intervention such as a web-based tool that facilitates patients to report their symptoms in real time, triggering alerts to clinicians, can have major benefits such as longer survival.

5 Jun 2017

Brief psychological intervention reduces depressive symptoms in patients with advanced cancer

Advanced cancer triggers enormous distress and brings challenges that can seem overwhelming. Yet, most cancer centers lack systematic approaches to help patients and families manage the practical and emotional toll of advanced cancer.

5 Jun 2017

Doctors debate about physician-assisted suicide

Few issues in medicine have been more controversial in recent years than physician-assisted suicide, with medical experts and the general public unable to come to a consensus that balances the delicate issue of dying with dignity with the interests of the individual and society as a whole.

5 Jun 2017

Patients nearing end of life may not feel abandoned after discontinuation of cholesterol medications

New research suggests patients nearing the end of their lives because of a "life-limiting illness" such as cancer or heart disease may not feel medically abandoned if their doctor wants to take them off the statins that control their cholesterol.

2 Jun 2017

Aggressive care in final days of life for advanced cancer patients not linked to better outcomes

For patients with advanced cancer, aggressive care -- chemotherapy, mechanical ventilation, acute hospitalizations and intensive care unit admissions -- at the end of life is commonplace.

25 May 2017

Study finds variations among hospitals in transitioning stroke patients from treatment to comfort care

Hospitals vary widely in how often they transition people with strokes from active treatment to comfort or hospice care within 48 hours after they get to the hospital, according to a new study published in the May 24, 2017, online issue of Neurology Clinical Practice, an official journal of the American Academy of Neurology.

25 May 2017

New book provides latest information on palliative care organization and delivery

Emeritus Professor Sheila Payne and Dr. Sean Hughes from Lancaster University have both contributed towards a new book 'Building Integrated Palliative Care Programmes and Services' published by the World Health Organization Palliative Care Initiative.

24 May 2017

Cholesterol-lowering drugs may not extend lifespan in heart-healthy older adults, study finds

Statins are increasingly prescribed to geriatric patients to stave off premature death from heart disease despite a lack of evidence that this practice benefits older populations.

22 May 2017

Simulation techniques improve brain death diagnostic, communications skills of neurologists

One of the most difficult skills a neurologist must learn is how to diagnosis brain death and communicate the bad news to family members.

12 May 2017

Synthetic scaffold loaded with cancer-fighting T cells effectively shrinks solid tumors

Cellular therapy hasn't had much success in fighting solid tumors, partly because it's been difficult to deliver anti-cancer T cells to the tumors.

25 Apr 2017

How physicians can prevent opioid abuse while providing adequate pain relief

Rather than being considered a miracle pill that magically takes away pain, prescription opioids are increasingly being seen as a precursor to heroin addiction and the cause of potentially deadly overdoses themselves.

19 Apr 2017

Report: Global increase in drug-resistant TB threatens to ruin efforts to eradicate the disease

The rise of multidrug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) tuberculosis (TB) threatens to derail decades of progress in controlling the disease, according to a new report in The Lancet Respiratory Medicine published on World TB day (24th March).

25 Mar 2017

New partnership funds research studies that aim to improve quality of palliative care for people with MND

Marie Curie and the Motor Neurone Disease (MND) Association have today announced the funding of three new research studies that aim to improve the quality of palliative and end of life care received by people with MND.

23 Mar 2017

End-of-life terminologies and prior experience matter to surrogate decision makers

Many people do not prepare advanced directives for their end-of-life medical care, so family members must make treatment decisions on their behalf.

22 Mar 2017

Increased palliative care consultation for advanced cancer patients leads to better outcomes

A recent study demonstrated that increased palliative care consultations for patients with advanced cancers is associated with substantial impact on 30-day readmission, administration of chemotherapy following discharge, hospice referral, and use of support services following discharge.

17 Mar 2017

Palliative Care News and Research

Further Reading

Patients with advanced illness should have more options for end-of-life care

Experts suggest multiple ways to reform hospice organizations

New approach could potentially prevent muscle wasting in muscular dystrophy and cancer

Centenarians have lower incidence of chronic illness than people in their 80s and 90s, study shows

SLU scientist discovers cause and potential solution for cancer-related bone pain

Symptom self-reporting web-based tool could be used to help extend oncology patients' lives, study finds

Brief psychological intervention reduces depressive symptoms in patients with advanced cancer

Doctors debate about physician-assisted suicide

Patients nearing end of life may not feel abandoned after discontinuation of cholesterol medications

Aggressive care in final days of life for advanced cancer patients not linked to better outcomes

Study finds variations among hospitals in transitioning stroke patients from treatment to comfort care

New book provides latest information on palliative care organization and delivery

Cholesterol-lowering drugs may not extend lifespan in heart-healthy older adults, study finds

Simulation techniques improve brain death diagnostic, communications skills of neurologists

Synthetic scaffold loaded with cancer-fighting T cells effectively shrinks solid tumors

How physicians can prevent opioid abuse while providing adequate pain relief

Report: Global increase in drug-resistant TB threatens to ruin efforts to eradicate the disease

New partnership funds research studies that aim to improve quality of palliative care for people with MND

End-of-life terminologies and prior experience matter to surrogate decision makers

Increased palliative care consultation for advanced cancer patients leads to better outcomes

Bringing real-time analytics to downstream bioprocess monitoring

Designing fluidic architecture for scalable diagnostic platforms

Evaluating new approaches for rare disease genomics

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