Journal of palliative medicine
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End-of-life decisions (ELDs) have been investigated in several care settings, but rarely in pediatric oncology. ⋯ In two-thirds of cases, ELDs preceded the death of a child with cancer. This is the first study providing insights into the characteristics of ELDs from a pediatric oncologist's point of view.
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In Japan, palliative home care is subject to increasing demand from patients. However, the number of deaths at home is still not as high as that of palliative home care users. ⋯ These results suggest that it may be possible to increase the rate of home care for end-stage cancer patients and meet their desires regarding the place of death through approaches to establish trust-based relationships with them and their families, such as strengthening manpower in home-visit nursing agencies and promoting collaboration between visiting nurses and family physicians in charge during home visits.
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Numerous studies have focused on the treatment of non-small cell lung cancer patients with brain metastases. However, to our knowledge, few have sought to examine outcomes in patients who required whole brain radiation and developed radiation-refractory disease. ⋯ Non-small cell lung cancer patients with radiation-refractory brain metastases represent a small subgroup who have a short survival and who appear to derive minimal benefit from systemic cancer therapy.