Does Hospice Mean There is Nothing More We Can Do?
No, there is much that can be done. With hospice care, the focus of treatment changes from curing the disease to treating its symptoms, making the patient comfortable and supporting the family unit. Hospice is a choice about getting help so patients can live every day to its fullest and their families get support to care for their loved one while navigating their own feelings of loss.
Recent studies have shown that hospice and palliative care services may actually prolong life. One clinical study, based on 4,493 terminally ill patients indicated that hospice patients lived an average of 29 days longer than those who received conventional treatment.(1) And, a 2010 study published in the New England Journal of Medicine found that lung cancer patients who received early palliative care lived 23.3% longer than those who delayed palliative treatment. Researchers hypothesized that study participants received care that better managed their symptoms leading to stabilization of their condition.(2)
1. Connor, S .R ., et al ., Vol . 33, No . 3, March 2007, Survival of Hospice Patients, Journal of Pain and Symptom Management, 238-246
2.Ternel JS, Greer JA, Muzinkansky A, et.al. Early Palliative Care for Patients with Metastatic Non-Small -Cell LungCancer. N Engl J Med.2010 Aug;363(8):733-42