r/science • u/mvea Professor | Medicine • 1d ago

Cancer Study finds many doctors disregard wishes of cancer patients. Frequently, patients with advanced cancer simply want to be made as comfortable as possible as they wind down their final days. Many of these patients are receiving treatment focused on extending their lives rather than easing their pain.

https://www.upi.com/Health_News/2025/08/26/cancer-patients-treatment-wishes-study/7921756217134/
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u/aggthemighty 1d ago

It's very YMMV. Some oncologists are comfort-focused, but some would give chemo to a corpse if they could.

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u/vavavoo 1d ago

Chemo is not only curative. Chemo can be given intermittently for years palliatively. It reduces the tumour burden which in turn may reduce symptoms and complications.

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u/aggthemighty 1d ago

I'm aware. I stand by what I said, though. In fact, let me clarify:

Some oncologists are comfort-focused. But some oncologists recommend aggressive chemotherapy for incurable cancers to debilitated patients for which the burden of treatment clearly exceeds the palliative benefit.

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u/vavavoo 1d ago

It’s an extremely difficult job. In hindsight you can always think that maybe you should have done something different for a patient. It’s not black and white. Some patients really do want a doctor that ”fights” with them to the end and never gives up. Others (often elderly), just want to be left alone and the burden of invasive care weighs very heavy on them.