Updated Clinical Practice Guidelines: Palliative Care for All Patients With Advanced Cancer

A recently updated clinical practice guideline from the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) strongly recommends that all patients with advanced cancer receive palliative care early in the disease course, concurrent with active treatment.

The guideline was recently highlighted by the JAMA Oncology Network who heralded it as an essential update.

“We applaud this recognition that the pillars of palliative care—including assessment and treatment of distressing symptoms, exploration of illness understanding and prognostic awareness, clarification of treatment goals, and assistance with decision making—should be the standard of care,” said JAMA in their detailed reaction.

The most recent ASCO guidelines build on reports from the Institute of Medicine and previous ASCO consensus statements defining palliative care as an integral part of oncology. Click here for more.