Articles: palliative-care.
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2025
Randomized Controlled TrialOrally dissolving pilocarpine tablets for xerostomia in advanced cancer: A pilot N-of-1 feasibility study.
Xerostomia is a common and difficult symptom experienced by patients with cancer. Pilocarpine is a cholinergic agent that stimulates salivation. ⋯ Recruitment to an N-of-1 trial for xerostomia is feasible but attrition was high (50%). Early dropout may have been due to the trial length, complexity, appropriateness or number of questionnaires. Adverse events were generally mild. Two of 10 participants were considered to have benefited from pilocarpine warranting ongoing treatment.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Feb 2025
The distress and benefits of the Bereaved Family Survey: A mortality follow-back survey.
The Bereaved Family Survey is an important method for evaluating the quality of palliative care. ⋯ Bereaved family members experience both distress and benefits. There is need to devise ways to reduce distress and increase its benefits to continue assessing the quality of palliative care.
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J Pain Symptom Manage · Feb 2025
Distributed Opioids in Morphine Equivalent: A Global Measure of Availability for Palliative Care.
Estimates of serious health-related suffering (SHS) demonstrate immense unmet need for palliative care, predominately in low- and middle-income countries (LMICs). Because opioids are essential medicines in palliative care (PC), measuring their availability can be used to evaluate the capacity of health systems to meet need. ⋯ DOME and DOME%SHSNEED can be used to monitor health system progress to redress disparities and promote access to medically indicated opioid therapy in palliative care.
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Palliative medicine · Feb 2025
Exploring "good days" with advanced cancer: A pilot daily diary study.
People with Stage IV cancer face physical and emotional challenges impacting quality of life. Conventional quality of life measures do not capture daily fluctuations in patient well-being. ⋯ This study highlights the importance of understanding day-to-day quality of life in individuals with advanced cancer. Further research is needed to assess quality of life longitudinally and to develop personalized supportive and palliative care interventions in this population.