Palliative care is a specialized form of support designed for individuals grappling with a significant illness. This comprehensive approach not only aids in the effective management of symptoms, pain, and treatment-related side effects but also provides invaluable assistance in navigating the emotional complexities associated with life-altering challenges.
Many people confuse palliative care with hospice care, but they are not the same. The goal of palliative care is to alleviate suffering and improve quality of life among people with serious illness. Palliative care specialists are experts in understanding and addressing the pain, symptoms, and stress that comes with such illness. They work with a person's existing medical team to enhance care by focusing on living their best life for as long as possible. Palliative care can be provided in the hospital, clinic, or home setting.
Hospice care is an insurance benefit that focuses specifically on the care, comfort, and quality of life of a person with a serious illness who is approaching the end of life. Like palliative care, it provides comprehensive care for the patient and the family. A key difference is that patients and families receiving hospice tend to recognize that the illness is not responding to medical treatments as hoped. They and their doctors believe the person with illness has 6 months or less to live if the illness runs its natural course. For this reason, hospice patients and families may choose to forego additional treatments and instead focus on other priorities. Hospice provides support in the home, including pain and symptom management, plus emotional and spiritual support for both patients and families.
The NCCN, supported by funding from the NCCN Foundation, has recently released updated guidelines for patients, now available for public access. Shared by the National Leiomyosarcoma Foundation:
https://www.cancer.org/content/dam/CRC/PDF/Public/7958.00.pdf
https://www.cancer.org/treatment/treatment-and-side-effects/palliative-care/how-to-find.html
https://www.cancer.org.au/cancer-information/treatment/palliative-care
Palliative care integration has become a cornerstone in the standard protocols of numerous sarcoma centers of excellence.
Be sure to ask about Palliative Care services if they are not discussed by your sarcoma care team
Palliative Care addresses the physical and emotional aspects of the cancer diagnosis and treatment – ranging from a broad range of issues integrating a patient's specific needs into care.
