Articles: palliative-care.
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Internal medicine journal · Jun 2021
Fact versus fiction: bridging contrasting medicinal cannabis information needs.
Regulatory changes now permit the availability and prescribing of medicinal cannabis in Australia. Public awareness and patient interest are high. Using a co-design approach involving cancer patients, carers and oncology and palliative care clinicians, two information resources were developed to provide readily available sources of important information for cancer patients and clinicians who are considering the use of medicinal cannabis. Focus groups and evaluation interviews revealed some areas of dissonance between consumers and clinicians concerning aspects of medicinal cannabis.
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J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother · Jun 2021
ReviewThe Risk of QTc Prolongation with Antiemetics in the Palliative Care Setting: A Narrative Review.
Nausea and vomiting are common within the palliative care population. Antiemetic agents may help control symptoms, but may also place patients at risk for QTc prolongation. This article reviews pharmacotherapy agents including anticholinergics, antihistamines, antidopaminergics, 5-HT3 receptor antagonists, dronabinol, and medical marijuana and their associated risk of QTc prolongation. A clinical treatment pathway is provided to help guide clinicians in choosing the most appropriate antiemetic based upon patient specific factors for QTc prolongation.
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Randomized Controlled Trial
A Palliative Care Intervention for Patients on Phase 1 Studies.
Background: Phase 1 clinical trials remain vital for oncology care. Patients on these trials require supportive care for quality-of-life (QOL) concerns. Objective: To test a Palliative Care Intervention (PCI) for patients with solid tumors enrolled in Phase I therapeutic trials with a priori hypothesis that psychological distress, QOL, satisfaction, symptoms, and resource utilization would be improved in the PCI group. ⋯ Conclusions: A nurse-delivered PCI can improve some QOL outcomes and distress for patients participating in Phase 1 trials. Greater integration of PC is needed to provide quality care to these patients and to support transitions from treatment to supportive care, especially at the end of life. ClinicalTrials.gov Identifier: NCT01612598.
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J Pain Palliat Care Pharmacother · Jun 2021
ReviewSubstance Abuse Risk and Medication Monitoring in Patients with Advanced Lung Cancer Receiving Palliative Care.
Oncology and Palliative Medicine lack guidance on routine opioid risk screening and compliance monitoring. This study explored relationships among risk screening and aberrant medication related behaviors in patients with advanced lung cancer receiving embedded palliative care. This was a single center, prospective study and data was collected from December 2018 to March 2020. ⋯ After pharmacist review, aberrant baseline UDS results were confirmed for 5/11 (45.5%) positive-risk and 4/23 (17.4%) negative-risk patients (p = 0.11). Overall, the SOAPP-R alone may be inadequate in this population and clinical pharmacists play an important role in comprehensive UDS result interpretation. Future studies are needed to validate this risk-screening tool in palliative cancer populations.