Hospitalists in a bind when cancer prognosis hasn’t sunk in
Hospitalists in a bind when cancer prognosis hasn’t sunk in
Medscape; by Jake Remaly; 4/15/25
When a patient with cancer is admitted to the hospital, the reason might not be related to the malignancy. But the hospitalist in charge sometimes becomes aware of a major disconnect: The patient, who they just met, does not grasp the severity of their cancer prognosis. On the one hand, the hospital medicine team and patient have advance directives and goals of care to consider, which may steer the course of the hospitalization and any use of hospice. The cancer prognosis — the patient might only have months to live, for example — could be a key component of those conversations. On the other hand, explaining the cancer situation should fall to the oncologist, right? ...
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