Kent Manuel, a 72-year-old cancer patient, shares his transition to palliative care after spinal surgery, highlighting the importance of flexible treatment plans and effective communication with his doctor.
"The delays have caused anxiety and stress for her entire family, particularly her husband. The nature of his diagnosis means that he's always worrying about us and what the future holds for us. This has created another level of worry for him."
"Even though the recommendation is to provide early palliative care, it's often not done. There are not enough palliative care clinicians to see every advanced lung cancer patient monthly, let alone patients with other types of cancer," Smith said. "In this study, we're looking to see if there are other ways to get patients regular palliative care while seeing the same benefits."