Early Palliative Care Provides Important Benefits for Family Caregivers of Patients with Cancer reports ASCO

A press release from the American Society of Clinical Oncology reports on this new study.

“Caregivers provide critical support for patients with cancer, but it can take a heavy toll. This study shows that early palliative care, although designed for and directed at patients, can also help ease the burden on their caregivers,” said ASCO President Julie M. Vose, MD, MBA, FASCO, ASCO President. “This insight contributes to the large and growing body of evidence supporting early palliative care for patients with advanced cancers.”

A randomized clinical trial found that introducing palliative care shortly after a cancer diagnosis results in better quality of life and fewer depression symptoms for family caregivers. According to the authors, the study is the first to show that early palliative care alone for a patient with cancer can have a strong impact on family caregivers. The study was featured in a press briefing May 18, 2016 and will be presented at the 2016 American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO) Annual Meeting in Chicago.

“This study suggests that early palliative care creates a powerful positive feedback loop in families facing cancer,” said lead study author Areej El-Jawahri, MD, Director of Bone Marrow Transplant Survivorship Program at Massachusetts General Hospital Cancer Center. “While patients receive a direct benefit from early palliative care, their caregivers experience a positive downstream effect, which may make it easier for them to care for their loved ones.”

Read the full ASCO press release. 
View the full abstract

The study will be presented at the 2016 American Society of Clinical Oncology Annual Meeting.