The goal of palliative care is to ease symptoms of the cancer and allow the patient to have the best quality of life possible. Palliative care includes a broad range of supportive care that can help patients beginning at the time of diagnosis. Some patients receive palliative care for years. Palliative care can include surgery, radiation, medication, pain management, mental health support, and others. Hospice care, which is sometimes confused with palliative care, is provided to patients only during the last months of their lives.
Clinical trials are being done to better understand palliative care and how to deliver it. Trials for palliative care include those studying management of side effects, complementary and integrative medicine, and support/education. Click the links below to learn more about the goals and different types of palliative care and find relevant clinical trials.
Palliative Care
- Breastcancer.org: Palliative care is personalized according to the patient’s individual needs
- Living Beyond Breast Cancer: Kimberly A. Curseen, MD, talks about what palliative care is and when and how people with MBC receive it
- MedPageToday: Palliative care for MBC can include surgery, radiation, medication, pain management, mental health support, and others
- Our MBC Life (podcast): This podcast episode explains how palliative care supports quality of life through MBC treatment
- Very Well Health: Palliative radiation is done to relieve symptoms of cancer
- Johns Hopkins: Palliative care to control pain can include medication and surgery
MBC Clinical Trials
- Metastatic Trial Search: Trials for Managing Side Effects
- Metastatic Trial Search: Trials for Complementary and Integrative Medicine
- Metastatic Trial Search: Trials for Support/Education
Last Modified on June 3, 2024