• Savitri Fedson.
• Section of Cardiology, Michael E DeBakey VA Medical Center, Center for Medical Ethics and Health Policy, Baylor College of Medicine, One Baylor Plaza, Suite 310D, Houston, TX, 77030, USA. fedson@bcm.edu.
• Curr Heart Fail Rep. 2020 Oct 1; 17 (5): 309-313.

Purpose Of ReviewPalliative care follows a philosophy of care that focuses upon the quality of life in patients with chronic or life-threatening illness. It also focuses upon the needs of their families which is a wider scope of care. Cardiovascular disease, and specifically heart failure, affects millions of patients and family members who have a symptom burden that exceeds that of many cancers and other chronic diseases.Recently FindingsHistorically palliative care has been viewed as an alternative to curative therapies, but over time, it is now recognized that it should be implemented earlier in the course of chronic diseases. Although non-oncologic patients now comprise over half of the patient seen by palliative care, patients with cardiovascular disease are still not being referred to palliative care. Palliative care goes beyond advance directives and end of life planning. There is a need to continue to expand the view of palliative care to encompass interventions that help improve the overall health of these patients, including their psychosocial well-being and quality of life. The collection of papers in this journal provides insight into the breadth of palliative care for patients with heart failure and other cardiovascular diseases.

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