A study from the Dartmouth Atlas Project found that care for patients with advanced cancer varies greatly depending on where the patients are treated, notes PBS.
But there are ways to help, no matter where patients live. PBS offers seven tips from physicians David Goodman and Ira Byock. Goodman, a professor of pediatrics of community and family medicine at the Geisel School of Medicine, is co-principal investigator for the Dartmouth Atlas Project and the director of the Center for Health Policy Research at The Dartmouth Institute for Health Policy & Clinical Practice. Byock is a professor of medicine at Geisel and author of The Best Possible Care.
Among the tips: “Palliative and hospice care can help people live longer.” Goodman and Byock say people often confuse the choice of hospice and palliative care with giving up hope, writes PBS. “In actuality, patients with invasive cancers who receive palliative care along with cancer treatments tend to enjoy better quality of life and live longer,” the physicians write.
Read the full story, published 11/12/13 by PBS.
