The Role of the Cancer Center in Supporting Palliative Care Services Development

Abstract

We have witnessed great progress in both Oncology (Onc) and Palliative Care (PC) in the last twenty years. In Onc we have witnessed the establishment of Multi-Disciplinary Teams and meetings, centralization of care, new Radiotherapy (RT) techniques: Intensity Modulated RT, Image Guided RT and stereotactic RT, to the revolution of molecular biology, with the understanding of oncogenic addiction, the emergence of targeted therapy and now immunotherapy with checkpoint inhibitors. In PC, essentially a new specialty was set up in many countries worldwide with major steps made in capacity building leading up to integration in a few countries [1,2]. Furthermore, there has been a recognition of the important role of PC in the palliation of patients with advanced illness, whilst more recently evidence for the earlier integration of PC in the disease trajectory has been produced [3,4].