Early Palliative Care Improves Quality of Life in NSCLC

Journal of Clinical Oncology

Early palliative care for patients with terminal non-small-cell lung cancer (NSCLC) improves the timing of final chemotherapy administration and is associated with an earlier transition to hospice care, according to a study published online Dec. 27 in the .

Joseph A. Greer, M.D., of the Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center in Boston, and colleagues investigated whether early palliative care affected the frequency and timing of chemotherapy use and hospice care for patients with metastatic NSCLC. This 18-month study involved 151 tertiary care patients with newly diagnosed metastatic NSCLC who were randomized to receive either early palliative care integrated with standard oncology care or standard oncology care alone.

Measures of outcome included the number and types of chemotherapy regimens, and the frequency and timing of chemotherapy administration and hospice referral.

Read the full story at: http://www.physiciansbriefing.com/Article.asp?AID=660207

Source: HealthDay