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Patients newly diagnosed with metastatic lung cancer who saw a palliative care team from diagnosis had better quality of life, less depression, less aggressive end-of-life care and lived a median 2.7 months longer than those receiving oncology care alone.
At Massachusetts General Hospital, 151 patients with newly diagnosed metastatic non-small-cell lung cancer were randomised to early palliative care integrated with standard oncology care (monthly visits with a palliative care clinician) or to standard oncology care with palliative care only on request.
The primary endpoint, change in quality of life at 12 weeks (FACT-L), favoured early palliative care (98.0 vs 91.5). Fewer patients had depressive symptoms (16% vs 38%), fewer received aggressive end-of-life care (33% vs 54%), and median survival was 11.6 versus 8.9 months.
The survival signal overturned the assumption that palliative care shortens life and led ASCO to recommend concurrent palliative care for all patients with metastatic cancer from diagnosis.
Palliative care is not what happens when treatment stops; it works best alongside cancer treatment from the start. Patients feel better, are less depressed and may live longer. Access remains the constraint: most of the world's patients never see a palliative care specialist.
Shares Hospice and end-of-life care, Pain relief and palliative care are unavailable to most, Early integrated palliative care, Toxicity and quality of life are undervalued.
Shares Hospice and end-of-life care, Pain relief and palliative care are unavailable to most.
Shares Electronic patient-reported outcome (ePRO) symptom monitoring, Early integrated palliative care, Not enough oncologists, nurses, pathologists, physicists, Toxicity and quality of life are undervalued.
Shares Pain relief and palliative care are unavailable to most, Early integrated palliative care.
Shares Pain relief and palliative care are unavailable to most, Early integrated palliative care, Toxicity and quality of life are undervalued.
Shares Pain relief and palliative care are unavailable to most, Toxicity and quality of life are undervalued.
Shares Pain relief and palliative care are unavailable to most, Not enough oncologists, nurses, pathologists, physicists.
Shares Pain relief and palliative care are unavailable to most, Early integrated palliative care, Toxicity and quality of life are undervalued.