Palliative
care is care of patients when cure is no longer possible, the
aim being to control symptoms and prolong life (by means of
surgery, radiotherapy, chemotherapy or hormone therapy).
Palliative care is the aim at the outset of treatment for about
50% of cancer patients (since only about 50% at diagnosis have
disease that is limited enough to realistically attempt cure).
Hospice care
no longer hopes to prolong life, but emphasizes symptom control
and quality of remaining life. It is characterized by a team
approach, symptom control, rehabilitation of the whole person,
good communication, psychological support, family counseling,
awareness of spiritual needs, expert care of the dying person and
bereavement follow-up.
These two
areas of care overlap. Patients receiving palliative treatment
benefit from a team approach to improve their quality of life.
Patients receiving hospice care occasionally need to be referred
for palliative treatments.
“A hospice
is a team or community concerned with enhancing the quality of
remaining life for a patient and family struggling with mortal
illness.”
(Cicely Saunders)
“Here they
treat me like a human being all the time, not just when they feel
like it.”
(Jane Zorza, in
A Way
to Die by Rosemary and Victor Zorza)
