Palliative Care for Cancer Survivors

The palliative care approach for survivors begins with comprehensive assessment of communication and advance care planning needs and the physical, psychological and psychiatric, social, spiritual and religious, and cultural domains. Communication and decision making about difficult issues should include responding to emotions, planning for future communication needs, and considering reasons for miscommunication. Key palliative approaches to symptom management include addressing physical and psychosocial concerns, and using nonpharmacologic approaches first or together with medications. Physicians should address advance care planning in older cancer survivors and those at significant risk of recurrence and mortality, ideally through ongoing conversations in a longitudinal care relationship.