Literature Review

The roboagents are coming!: The promise and challenge of artificial intelligence advance directivesThe Hastings Center Report; by Jacob M Appel; Jan-Feb 2026Advance directives have historically relied upon human agents. But what happens when a patient appoints an artificial intelligence system as an agent? This essay introduces the idea of roboagents-chatbots authorized to make medical decisions when individuals lose capacity. After describing potential models, including a personal AI companion and a chatbot that has not been trained on a patient's values and preferences, the essay explores the ethical tensions these roboagents generate regarding autonomy, bias, consent, family trust, and physician well-being. This essay then calls for legal clarity and ethical guidance regarding the status of roboagents in light of their potential as alternative health care agents.

[Spain] End-of-life preparedness and emotional suffering in patients and caregivers: Findings from an international cohort study spanning the period before and after deathPalliative Medicine; by Clément Meier, Verónica Inés Veloso, Bélen Carballo, Eva Víbora Martín, Pilar Barnestein-Fonseca, Dröfn Birgisdóttir, Valgerður Sigurðardóttir, Ida Korfage, Agnes van der Heide, Vilma A Tripodoro; 1/26Preparing for the end of life is believed to help mitigate emotional suffering for both patients and their caregivers. This study uses data from the international iLIVE project to examine how perceived end-of-life preparedness is associated with emotional suffering among patients and their caregivers before and after death. Feeling fully prepared for the end of life was significantly associated with lower levels of emotional suffering for both patients and caregivers. Among patients, preparedness was linked to reduced emotional suffering at baseline and follow-up. For caregivers, these associations were even more pronounced at baseline, follow-up, and after the patient's death.

Relearning the world through grief-informed case formulation: A critique of prolonged grief disorder Journal of Humanistic Psychology; by Eleonora Ramsby Herrera, PhD; 1/31/26 Drawing on existential and humanistic frameworks, this review article critically examines the diagnosis of prolonged grief disorder and questions the usefulness of reducing grieving to a fixed set of symptoms and timelines. ... Rather than viewing grief as a disorder to be treated, the article advocates for understanding it as a natural and potentially transformative human response and argues for integrating grief into the bereaved person’s life story as a way to relearn the world.

Medical Aid in Dying: A narrative review of the recent academic literature in the United States Cureus; by Holland Kaplan, Soraira Pacheco, Keziah M. Thomas, Christopher L. Ulmschneider, Anjiya Sulaiman, Chandni Lotwala, Derek Dawes, Issa A. Hanna, Courtney Nguyen, Caroline G. Snider, Gabriel M. Aisenberg; 2/23/26 ... To assess how academic discourse may shape public opinion and policy in the United States, we conducted a narrative review of the literature published between 2020 and 2024. Articles were categorized as supportive, opposing, or neutral, and patterns were examined across authorship, disciplinary focus, and target populations. ... Authorship discipline strongly influenced position, with legal journals disproportionately supportive and religious journals more frequently opposed. Arguments favoring MAiD emphasized autonomy and relief of suffering, whereas opposing articles highlighted risks to vulnerable populations and potential harm. 

[Finland] A value chain analysis of digitalizing hospital-at-home services in Finland Health Care Management Review; by Fan Wang, Henna Härkönen, Gillian Vesty, Terhi-Maija Isakov, Petri Ahokangas, Irina Atkova, Miia Jansson, April-June 2026, online ahead of print Purposes: The aim of this study is to explore the value of digitalization in the hospital-at-home (HaH) value chain in Finland. This qualitative study used both deductive and inductive methods to map the HaH value chain and find out how digitalization can help improve value-added activities.Findings: This study highlights the value of data interoperability, remote and real-time digital solutions, data analytics in enhancing coordination and efficiency, optimizing service delivery, improving patient experience, and supporting cost-effectiveness across the HaH value chain.

Co-designing a framework to communicate patient-centred outcomes in palliative care: involving patients and the public to reframe understanding Journal of Patient-Reported Outcomes; by Mevhibe B Hocaoglu, Adejoke Oluyase, Deb Smith, Rashmi Kumar, Sarah Perman, Matthew Maddocks, Sian Best, Chloe Nast, Sabrina Bajwah, Katherine E Sleeman, Irene J Higginson; 2/21/26 online ahead of print Conclusions: This study found that communication of patient-centred outcomes and Patient-Reported outcome (PRO) evidence can be strengthened through meaningful patient and public involvement and engagement (PPIE). This approach helps to reframe public understanding of palliative care, highlighting its broader relevance beyond end-of-life settings. While developed in the context of palliative care, the framework offers transferable strategies for communicating complex outcomes in other often misunderstood or stigmatised areas, such as mental health and dementia care.

Cancer support camps and the measurement of quality of life among children of parents with cancerSupportive Care in Cancer; by Mia K. Price, Marcelo M. Sleiman Jr., Muriel R. Statman, Duye Liu, Rachel Adams, Matthew G. Biel, Alexandra L. Baldwin, Joseph M. Stilwell, Kenneth P. Tercyak; 1/26Children of parents with cancer face elevated risks of anxiety, depression, and impaired social-emotional functioning. This study aimed to develop and evaluate the Kids’ Experience of Summer Enrichment Measure (KESEM), a parent-report tool assessing psychosocial well-being among children attending a cancer support camp due to a parent’s cancer [and] ... the majority of parents (78%) strongly agreed that camp was favorably impactful and would recommend it to others.

GOComm: A team-based communication intervention to improve clinicians' skills and distress tolerance in family meetingsJournal of Hospital Medicine; by Kimberly Bloom-Feshbach, Evgenia Litrivis, Elizabeth Brondolo, Alexandra Spinelli, Thomas Bozzo, Melissa Patterson, Robert Crupi, Cynthia X Pan; 1/26Medical training often omits systematic approaches to prognostication and goals of care (GOC) communication, leading to end-of-life (EOL) hospital care misaligned with patients' values, lower clinician self-efficacy, and greater clinician distress. We developed and implemented GOComm, a 4-h serious illness communication training program across eight campuses of a large health system.  Clinicians had statistically significant gains in GOC knowledge, self-efficacy, and distress tolerance. GOComm had high clinician acceptability: 96.2% indicated they would recommend GOComm to a colleague, and 83.2% credited it with changing how they will manage patients.

Connected care for older adults: A pilot intervention engaging community health workers to advance age-friendly care in rural OregonJournal of the American Geriatrics Society; by Bryanna De Lima, Lindsay Miller, Elizabeth Foster, Jodi Ready, Elizabeth Eckstrom; 1/26Aging in a rural setting presents unique challenges including limited access to in-home care, lack of social support, language and cultural barriers, and the lack of transportation. We conducted a pilot study embedding community health workers (CHWs) into rural primary care teams to assist with implementation of the 4Ms of the Age-Friendly Health System: What Matters, Mentation, Medication, and Mobility. The program made a positive difference for 95% of responding patients (n = 120) and 100% of responding providers (n = 19) were "very satisfied" with the program. Clinicians cited the CHWs' ability to support resource connections, address social isolation and social needs, provide regular check-ins, and help to get patients and families engaged in care as positive components of the model.

Acupuncture and acupressure for cancer symptom management: An opinion statement based on preliminary evidence mappingCurrent Treatment Options in Oncology; by Nada Lukkahatai, Jingyu Zhang, Chitchanok Benjasirisan, Sutthida Phongphanngam, Aomei Shen, Phakjira Jaiman, Jennifer Kawi, Thomas J. Smith, Leorey N. Saligan; 1/26 Symptom management remains a critical priority in oncology, particularly as many survivors continue to experience fatigue, pain, sleep disturbance, neuropathy, and psychological distress despite advances in treatment. Conventional pharmacologic options often provide only partial relief and may be limited by side effects. Acupuncture and acupressure have emerged as promising non-pharmacologic approaches, but the supporting evidence is drawn from a broad and heterogeneous literature. In this opinion paper, we provide a preliminary overview of the current review-level evidence to highlight general trends and evolving areas of promise, while emphasizing the need for further sham-controlled studies to clarify effectiveness and guide integration of acupuncture and acupressure into supportive oncology.