Get Palliative Blog

Many people living with a serious illness miss out on getting palliative care because they don’t know about it and how it works. Palliative care is specialized medical care that treats the symptoms and stress of serious illness. Palliative care treats any serious illness, but the most common ones are cancer, heart disease, stroke, diabetes, kidney disease, Parkinson’s, and Alzheimer’s diseases.

Understanding the following four “C”s can help you and your family talk to your doctor and ask for palliative care. … Read More

People living with a serious illness often have questions and concerns about sexuality and intimacy. But intimacy and sexuality aren’t always noticed by the people who treat you. Discussing how your illness has affected your relationships may help you open the door to the conversation if your health care team doesn’t bring it up first. … Read More

Palliative care can provide many benefits to people living with Alzheimer’s disease or other dementias, and their caregivers.

“Palliative care is an opportunity for you and your loved one to get a helping hand and make it easier for both of you,” says Doris Phildor, Health Systems Director at the Alzheimer’s Association in New York City.  … Read More

Shortness of breath is one of the most common symptoms for people living with a serious illness. It can be caused by asthma, cancer, heart failure, chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (COPD), pneumonia, or other conditions. Struggling for air can be exhausting and frightening for you and for your caregivers. A palliative care team can help. Palliative care is available at any stage of your disease and the earlier you get it, the better. … Read More

Taking five or more prescription medicines (called polypharmacy) is more common than most people realize. Research shows that it is very common among older adults. Usually, this is because the person has several chronic conditions. That’s why health care providers tend to add medicines. The problem? The chances of a poor outcome go up the more medicines you take. Palliative care doctors can make a difference. … Read More

Dan is a former palliative care nurse practitioner, avid hunter, and cyclist who was diagnosed with frontotemporal dementia at age 47. Dan received palliative care early in his diagnosis. … Read More

By Andrew Esch, MD

If you have colorectal cancer, you know that your pain, symptoms, and the side effects of treatments can take a toll on your quality of life.  Therefore, they can stop you from doing the things that are important to you. They can also lead to unwanted hospital stays. But palliative care can help.  … Read More

Cancer specialists (oncologists) recommend chemotherapy in one of two situations. For some cancers, chemotherapy can completely get rid of the cancer with a good chance that it will never come back. Examples include certain types of lymphoma, leukemia and testicular cancer, among others. For most cancers that have metastasized (spread beyond the original cancer site), chemotherapy cannot cure the cancer. However, chemotherapy may be helpful in shrinking the cancer, improving or completely eliminating distressing symptoms caused by the cancer for a period of time and helping you live longer and with a better quality of life. The use of chemotherapy in these situations is called palliative chemotherapy. … Read More