Cancer is a leading cause of death in adolescents and young adults (AYAs) Wiener et al. (Pediatr Blood Cancer 60(5):715-718, 2013). Though most AYAs will survive, cancer will become incurable in 10-40 % Schrijvers and Meijnder (Cancer Treat Rev…
Adolescents and young adults (AYAs) with cancer represent a unique and challenging group of patients with distinct developmental and psychosocial needs that may be unrecognized or unmet during their cancer experience. Palliative care refers to the…
PURPOSE: This study examined the provision of palliative care and related decision-making in Swiss pediatric oncology settings. The aim was to determine if and when children who died from cancer received palliative care, whether there were…
Palliative care (PC) aims to improve quality of life for patients and their families. The World Health Organization and American Academy of Pediatrics recommend that PC starts at diagnosis for children with cancer. This systematic review describes…
CONTEXT: Childhood cancer care is delivered by interprofessional healthcare teams however little is known about how parents perceive overall team-delivered care (TDC). OBJECTIVES: We sought to describe parent perceptions of TDC and associated…
Communication is essential to providing family-centered care in pediatric oncology. Previously, we developed a functional model of communication between parents and clinicians. Prior research has not examined the domains and purposes of communication…
OBJECTIVES: The loss of a child is a devastating event, and bereaved parents often suffer intense and long-lasting grief reactions and are at risk for psychological symptoms. More knowledge about how parents cope with grief may improve the support to…
Cancer and other non-communicable diseases are a growing public health issue now that infectious disease control (e.g., HIV/AIDS, malaria, and tuberculosis) has made great strides across low- and middle-income countries (L&MIC). The large majority…
Palliative care offers children who have life-limiting and life-threatening oncologic illnesses and their families improved quality of life. In some instances, impeccable symptom control can lead to improved survival. Cultural and financial barriers…
Pediatric oncology, which includes cancer screening and therapy in children, poses significant challenges in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Palliative care improves children's and their families' quality of life. In LMICs, palliative care…
BACKGROUND: It can be difficult to explain pediatric phase 1 oncology trials to families of children with refractory cancer. Parents may misunderstand the information presented to them, and physicians may assume that certain topics are covered in the…
CONTEXT: Early integration of palliative care (PC) in the management of children with high-risk cancer is widely endorsed by patients, families, clinicians, and national organizations. However, optimal timing for PC consultation is not standardized,…
BACKGROUND: In the U.S., more children die from cancer than from any other disease, and more than one third die in the hospital setting. These data have been replicated even in subpopulations of children with cancer enrolled on a palliative care…
Purpose: Parents of children that die from cancer are at increased risk of significant long-term psychosocial and physical morbidities. Less, however, is known about the experience of parents early in the grief process. Currently used frameworks and…
BACKGROUND: Pediatric palliative care (PPC) is a priority to improve pediatric hematology oncology (PHO) care in Eurasia. However, there are limited regional opportunities for PPC education. We describe the adaptation and implementation of a…
BACKGROUND: Pain management at the end of life is a fundamental aspect of care and can improve patients' quality of life. Interventional approaches may be underutilized for pediatric cancer patients. OBJECTIVE: To describe a single institution's 10…
BACKGROUND: Hope is a multidimensional concept that is important for all parents of children with cancer. However, most work has focused on advanced cancer and poor prognoses. We examined hopes of all parents of children with cancer longitudinally…
Children with cancer and their families experience shifts in spiritual wellness from diagnosis through treatment and survivorship or bereavement. An interdisciplinary team conducted a systematic review of quantitative and qualitative research on…
Children diagnosed with diffuse intrinsic pontine glioma (DIPG) face a dismal prognosis, with severe neurologic deterioration and inevitable death at a median of 9 months from diagnosis. Steroids are widely prescribed as supportive or palliative…
Background Malignant pleural effusion (MPE) and ascites (MA) negatively impact quality of life of palliative patients. Treatment options are limited. This study's purpose is to examine the experience with indwelling tunneled catheters (ITCs) for…
PURPOSE: This study was designed to report information regarding symptomology of incurable pediatric cancer to promote proactive medicine and support for children and their families in the palliative phase in Mainland China. METHOD: A multi-center…
BACKGROUND: Systematic symptom assessment is not a standard of care in children with cancer. Many well-known symptom assessment tools are lengthy or difficult to integrate into a daily pediatric palliative care practice. We created a series of brief…
CONTEXT: Pediatric palliative care (PPC) improves quality of life and end-of-life outcomes for children with cancer, but often occurs late in the disease course. The Supportive Care Clinic (SCC) was launched in 2017 to expand outpatient PPC access.…
Owing to differences in opinion about patient autonomy and perceived maturity, discussing diagnosis and prognosis with children can be challenging. Shifting away from “never tell” and “always tell” approaches, recent articles have championed more…
Pediatric phase I clinical oncology trials represent a unique cohort of patients who have not responded to standard therapies and remain highly vulnerable to treatment toxicity and/or disease burden. Incorporating a palliative care consultation into…
