Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer
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Support Care Cancer · Jan 2006
Edmonton symptom assessment scale: Italian validation in two palliative care settings.
In the palliative care setting, the Edmonton Symptom Assessment Scale (ESAS) was developed for use in daily symptom assessment of palliative care patients. ESAS considers the presence and severity of nine symptoms common in cancer patients: pain, tiredness, nausea, depression, anxiety, drowsiness, appetite, well-being and shortness of breath plus an optional tenth symptom, which can be added by the patient. The aim of this study was to validate the Italian version of ESAS and to evaluate an easy quality of life monitoring system that uses a patient's self-rating symptom assessment in two different palliative care settings: in-patients and home patients. ⋯ The association of ESAS scores and performance status (PS) showed a trend: the higher the symptom score was, the worse was the PS level. Test-retest evaluation, applied in the in-patient group, showed good agreement for depression, well-being and overall distress and a moderate agreement for all the other items. In conclusion, ESAS can be considered a valid, reliable and feasible instrument for physical symptom assessment in routine "palliative care" clinical practice with a potentially different responsiveness in different situations or care settings.
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Support Care Cancer · Jan 2006
Comparative StudyClinical, sociodemographic, and local system factors associated with a hospital death among cancer patients.
The study was conducted to examine factors associated with hospital deaths among a group of cancer patients. ⋯ The study identified groups of cancer patients at risk of hospital death. These results should account when planning the allocation of hospital palliative care services as well as when informing policy decisions about health care financing and delivery of these services.
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Support Care Cancer · Jan 2006
An innovative rapid response radiotherapy program to reduce waiting time for palliative radiotherapy.
Waiting for radiation therapy (RT) in Ontario has been a major problem for the past decade. In 1996, the Toronto-Sunnybrook Regional Cancer Centre (TSRCC) initiated a Rapid Response Radiotherapy Program (RRRP) to provide timely palliative RT for symptom relief of patients with terminal cancer. ⋯ Over the past 8 years, the annual number of new cases referred to the RRRP has doubled. The overall median interval from referral to consultation was 8 days. Sixty percent were simulated, planned and started treatment on the day of their initial consultation. We therefore are meeting our goal of providing rapid access to palliative RT for symptomatic cancer patients.
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Support Care Cancer · Dec 2005
Spirituality, psychotherapy and music in palliative cancer care: research projects in psycho-oncology at an oncology center in Switzerland.
It is recognized as increasingly important in palliative care that spiritual needs of terminally ill patients should be acknowledged and addressed. Two research projects investigated the feasibility of psychotherapeutic and music therapeutic assistance offered to advanced cancer patients. The first project (1998-2000) sought to improve the understanding of the effect of therapeutic support given to 80 patients and the characteristics of the dying process. ⋯ Music therapy, psychotherapy and spiritual assistance offer essential methods for psycho-oncology and palliative care. A holistic and interdisciplinary approach is needed to assist patients in their complex suffering. Our findings on spiritual experience and terminal communication should stimulate further research in a still unexplored territory of clinical research.
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Support Care Cancer · Dec 2005
Use of midazolam and ketamine as sedation for children undergoing minor operative procedures.
We used intravenous midazolam and ketamine for children undergoing minor operative procedures with satisfactory results. We aimed to further evaluate its efficacy and adverse effects in pediatric ward setting. ⋯ Intravenous midazolam-ketamine can provide rapid, effective, and safe sedation for children undergoing minor operations in ward setting. Adverse effects are mild. Midazolam above 0.3 mg/kg should be used with caution.