Palliative care (from
Latin palliare, to cloak) is any form of medical care or treatment that concentrates on reducing the severity of
disease symptoms, rather than striving to halt, delay, or reverse progression of the disease itself or provide a
cure. The goal is to prevent and relieve
suffering and to improve
quality of life for people facing serious, complex illness. Non-hospice palliative care is not dependent on
prognosis and is offered in conjunction with curative and all other appropriate forms of medical treatment.
In the United States a distinction is made between general palliative care and hospice care, which delivers palliative care to those at the end of life; with the two aspects of care sharing a similar philosophy but differing in their payment systems and location of services. Elsewhere, for example in the UK, this distinction is not operative in addition to specialized hospices, non-hospice-based palliative care teams provide care to those with life-limiting illness at any stage of disease.
The term "palliative care" generally refers to any care that alleviates symptoms, whether or not there is hope of a cure by other means; thus, a recent WHO statement[1] calls palliative care "an approach that improves the quality of life of patients and their families facing the problems associated with life-threatening illness." Palliative treatments may also be used to alleviate the side effects of curative treatments, such as relieving the nausea associated with chemotherapy.
The term "palliative care" is increasingly used with regard to diseases other than cancer such as chronic, progressive pulmonary disorders, renal disease, chronic heart failure, and progressive neurological conditions. In addition, the rapidly growing field of pediatric palliative care has clearly shown the need for services geared specifically for children with serious illness.
