Posted on 10/24/2022 9:42:16 AM PDT by ConservativeMind
Continued treatment for patients with cancer near end-of-life escalates costs and may adversely affect the quality of care patients receive. Accordingly, over the last decade, major professional societies have recommended that clinicians decrease the use of systemic anti-cancer therapies at the end-of-life stage.
Researchers revealed that despite these recommendations, aggressive cancer care at the end-of-life persists and there has been a substantial transition from the use of chemotherapy to immunotherapy.
"Systemic anti-cancer therapy has changed dramatically following the approvals of multiple new targeted therapies," said Kerin Adelson, MD.
Researchers used the nationwide Flatiron Health electronic health record (EHR)-derived database to evaluate adult patients with cancer who received treatment and died within four years of diagnosis. Rates of treatment within 30 days of death among all cancer types combined did not change (39% in 2015 and 2019) with similar trends seen for treatment within 14 days of death (17% in 2015 and 2019).
However, the type of systemic therapy received did vary; there were overall decreases in the use of chemotherapy (26% in 2015 and 16% in 2019) and increases in the use of immunotherapy (5% in 2015 and 18% in 2019). These changes were most noticeable in advanced non-small cell lung cancer and urothelial cancers where increases in treatment at end-of-life were driven by increased checkpoint inhibitor use.
"Our analysis identified no difference in the overall use of systemic anti-cancer therapy at the end-of-life since 2015. The approval of multiple new immunotherapy agents has engendered a great replacement phenomenon, substituting immunotherapy for chemotherapy," said Dr. Adelson. "Increases in the use of targeted therapies may have interfered with our ability to achieve earlier palliative care integration and reduction in acute care utilization. More research is needed to determine if this change has affected the way end-of-life care is provided."
(Excerpt) Read more at medicalxpress.com ...
When doctors in these societies are responsible for your care, you have to stay on top of them to make sure they are behaving as you demand, on your behalf. If you want to just die in a comfortable way, or if you actually want the option to live longer, or even be cured, it needs to stay your choice.
Beware of any doctor in the “American Society of Clinical Oncology.”
They have an agenda with which you may not agree.
See my tagline:
Define “end-of-life”!!!!
Just give em Soma.
Been approved since 1984.
And herein lies the downside of Socialized Medicine, aka Medicare thus far. “...to each according to his needs” until the pot runs dry. Then it’s rationing for all. How quaint was that sage advice from our elders: “Save for your old age for medical care when you’ll need it.” Mom and dad paid for our medical care, cash on delivery. Charity hospitals and teaching hospitals for those who couldn’t pay. And the shame one felt asking for free service from charities.
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