Palliative Care

University Hospitals Provides Palliative Care to Patients with Cancer

Supportive Oncology Services at University Hospitals Seidman Cancer Center in Cleveland, Ohio, provides palliative care to patients with cancer and their families. Palliative care is a specialized area of healthcare that helps relieve and prevent suffering for people with serious illnesses. For patients with cancer, palliative care focuses on relieving pain, symptoms and stress.

With palliative care, an expert team of doctors, nurses and other specialists work together with a patient's other care team members to provide an extra layer of support. Palliative care is appropriate at any age and at any stage of cancer and can be provided along with chemotherapy or other curative treatment.

Palliative Care is a Team Effort

Palliative care is a supportive partnership between the patient with cancer, the family and trained medical specialists, including:

• Doctors
• Nurses
• Social Workers
• Nutritionists

The palliative care team at UH Seidman Cancer Center provides:

• Expert management of pain and other symptoms
• Help navigating the healthcare system
• Guidance with difficult and complex treatment choices
• Emotional and spiritual support for the patient and family

Palliative Care Improves Quality of Life

Palliative care at UH Seidman Cancer Center helps relieve symptoms of cancer, including:

• Pain
• Shortness of breath
• Fatigue
• Constipation
• Nausea
• Loss of appetite
• Difficulty sleeping

This specialized care helps patients with cancer gain the necessary strength to move forward with daily life. Also, palliative care helps improve the patient’s ability to cope with chemotherapy, radiation and other medical treatments for cancer.