Literature Review

[Spain] Mapping palliative care for people living with advanced cancer in phase 1 clinical trials: A scoping reviewPalliative Medicine; by Diego Candelmi, Alazne Belar, Carla Zapata Del Mar, Ana Landa-Magdalena, Anna Vilalta-Lacarra, Mariano Ponz-Sarvisé, Carlos Centeno; 9/25This review highlights the unique needs of patients and caregivers in Phase 1 Cancer Clinical Trials and the complexities of integrating palliative care. Key results revealed patients' limited life expectancy, high symptom burden, distress and unmet spiritual needs [and]... patients were reluctant to seek prognostic information or engage in end-of-life discussions, complicating advance care planning. End-of-life care involved frequent unscheduled hospital admissions, hospital deaths and late hospice-care referrals. Caregivers experienced significant distress, while healthcare professionals faced barriers to integrating palliative care. Palliative care interventions varied widely in approaches, settings and outcomes.Assistant Editor's note: This article discusses how palliative care could benefit patients that are enrolled in phase 1 clinical trials for cancer. Traditionally, it has not been common practice for palliative care programs to serve these kinds of patients and their loved ones. This represents an opportunity for the expansion of much needed palliative care services.  

Instilling hope: A comprehensive model of cancer care for younger adults Targeted Oncology; by Andrea Eleazar, MHS and Shane Dormady, MD, PhD; 9/29/25 In the past decade, the incidence of numerous cancer types has increased, particularly among younger adults under age 50. For younger adults, many of whom are primary breadwinners of their households or in the height of their educational or professional careers, a cancer diagnosis at this life stage can be unexpected and jarring. ... In an interview with Targeted Oncology, Shane Dormady, MD, PhD, medical director of El Camino Health Cancer Center, describes the unique needs and challenges of younger adults, outlines El Camino Health’s comprehensive care strategy, and offers insights and considerations for treating and interacting with this patient population.

Adobe Population Health expands footprint through acquisition of clinical programs from MedZed Physician Services Adobe Population Health; by PRNewswire/PRWeb; 9/26/25 Adobe Population Health, an innovative care management company, proudly announces the acquisition from MedZed Physician Services of certain assets related to MedZed Physician Services' California based In-Home Primary Care and Palliative Care services. The acquisition of such assets, contracts, and employees supports Adobe's expansion into California, reinforcing Adobe's commitment to closing care gaps and addressing the needs of the most vulnerable populations. Adobe Population Health offers proactive care management services through a tech-enabled, hybrid care model delivering whole-person care.

Outpatient pediatric palliative care: A national survey of clinic structures and operationsJournal of Pain and Symptom Management; by Ashley Kiefer Autrey, Caroline Stafford, Casie James, Suraj Sarvode Mothi, Elissa G. Miller, Alexis Morvant, Erica C. Kaye; 8/25Despite the rapid growth of pediatric palliative care (PPC) over the past two decades, outpatient pediatric palliative care (OPPC) remains an underdeveloped resource for children living with serious illness and their families. Characterizing the utilization of clinic models and workflow processes among OPPC programs is essential for establishing benchmarks to help improve OPPC operationalization and hospital-specific program development. This paper presents national data to address this gap, with the goal of supporting PPC programs in their efforts to expand service lines to meet the growing needs of patients with serious illness and medical complexity and their families.

Emergency Departments report more consults for hospice, palliative care Michigan State University, East Lansing, MI; by Michigan State University; 9/25/25 One-third of Americans will visit an emergency department, or ED, within a month of their death. While EDs are primarily purposed to provide emergent care, they’re increasingly becoming an initial touchpoint for hospice and palliative care, or HPC, referrals and consultations, according to a new study from several researchers at Henry Ford Health + Michigan State University Health Sciences.  Why this matters:

Building blocks of hospice family caregiver support Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 9/24/25 Untapped reimbursement opportunities exist when it comes to developing a sustainable family caregiving infrastructure in the face of rising demand for home-based hospice care. ... Among the payment avenues with potential to improve support for caregivers is the Medicaid-funded Structured Family Caregiving (SFC) program. SFC coverage includes a modest financial stipend to health care providers that offer home- and community-based services for caregivers. ... Roughly 63 million Americans are family caregivers, an increase of nearly 50% since 2015, according to a report from the National Alliance for Caregiving and AARP. About one-in-every-four adults is a caregiver to a family member, with 40% of these individuals providing high-intensity care, the report found. About half of the nation’s caregivers reported negative financial impacts, with one-in-five unable to afford basic needs such as food and 25% taking on debt. Additionally, one-in-five caregivers have poor health outcomes, the report found.Editor's Note: Are you aware that the 2008 CMS Hospice Conditions of Participation identify the "family" 423 times? (Yes, I've searched, counted, and categorized.) Click here for AARP's 2025 edition of Caregiving in the US.

Hospice, palliative care services yield high quality, cost savings Hospice News; by Holly Vossel; 9/22/25 Hospice and palliative care services can result in better outcomes and reduced costs, recent research has found. A recent study by Empassion Health examined 45,957 seriously ill patients receiving supportive care through the organization from January 2023 to April 2025. The study found a 35% reduction in total cost of care per patient during the final year of life when compared to other individuals. ... The study illustrates the significant quality and cost impacts of hospice and palliative care delivery, Robin Heffernan, CEO and co-founder of Empassion Health, said ... 

C-TAC announces reintroduction of the Improving Access to Advanced Care Planning Act The Coalition to Transform Advanced Care (C-TAC), Washington, DC; by Debra McCarron; 9/18/25 The Coalition to Transform Advanced Care (C-TAC) today announced the reintroduction of the Improving Access to Advanced Care Planning Act, a key bill designed to expand access to advanced care planning (ACP) services under Medicare. The announcement was made by Senator Warner (D-VA), a long-time champion of patient rights, during the National Partnership for Healthcare and Hospice Innovation Washington Leadership Meeting. The bill continues to enjoy bipartisan support and has been cosponsored by Senator Collins (R-ME).

What makes a good death? GeriPal - A Geriatrics and Palliative Care Podcast for Every Healthcare Professional; by Alex Smith with Karen Steinhauser, Rasa Mikelyte and Edison Vidal; 9/18/25What is a “good death”? How should we define it, and who gets to decide? Is the concept of a “good death” even useful? ... In today’s podcast, we are honored to have Karen join us to discuss this pivotal study and the nature of a “good death”. We are also joined by Rasa Mikelyte and Edison Vidal, co-authors of a recent study comparing the perspectives of people with dementia in the UK and Brazil on what constitutes a good death. In addition to exploring the nature of a good death and their individual studies, we will discuss:

[Spain] First-ever global ranking of palliative care: 2025 World Map under the new WHO frameworkJournal of Pain & Symptom Management; by Vilma A. Tripodoro, Jesús Fernando López Fidalgo, Juan José Pons, Stephen R. Connor, Eduardo Garralda, Fernanda Bastos, Álvaro Montero, Laura Monzón Llamas, Ana Cristina Béjar, Daniela Suárez, Carlos Centeno; 8/25This study presents the first comprehensive global assessment of PC [palliative care] development, utilising the WHO Conceptual Framework as a multidimensional tool to monitor progress. Results reveal stark inequities: more than half of the global population lives in countries with Emerging or Progressing PC levels, while fewer than one-fifth are in Advanced systems. Despite methodological updates in 2025, the number of Advanced-level countries remains unchanged from 2017, suggesting limited progress. This is consistent with downgrades in countries such as Israel, Spain, Canada, Liechtenstein, Romania, and Mongolia, which may reflect data gaps, methodological shifts, or actual declines.

CMS launches landmark $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program CMS Newsroom - Rural Health; Press Release; 9/15/25 Today [9/15], the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services (CMS) unveiled details on how states can apply to receive funding from the $50 billion Rural Health Transformation Program created under the Working Families Tax Cuts Act to strengthen health care across rural America. This unprecedented investment is designed to empower states to transform the existing rural health care infrastructure and build sustainable health care systems that expand access, enhance quality of care, and improve outcomes for patients. ... The Rural Health Transformation Program invites all 50 states to apply for funding to address each state’s specific rural health challenges. 

Has human life expectancy already peaked?Vice; by Luis Prada; 9/10/25 For most of the 20th century, human life expectancy skyrocketed. Advancements in hygiene science, a wide variety of medical innovations and discoveries ... have all helped our collective life expectancies tremendously. According to a new study, however, we may have topped out. In the study, published in PNAS and spotted by Science Alert, an international team of researchers crunched the numbers on people born between 1939 and 2000 in 23 high-income countries, using six different forecasting models.Editor's Note: I recall a hospice CE conference around 2005, where a healthcare data statistician presented projections on mortality trends. Based on the previous century’s gains, the data suggested that babies born then could live well past 100—with 120 years as a realistic possibility. This new study raises the provocative question of whether those optimistic forecasts may already have reached their limits.

A workflow initiative to increase the early palliative care referral rate in patients with advanced cancer MDedge - Federal Practitioner - Quality Improvement; by Judy Lim, MD and Linda D. Nguyen, DNP, NP-C, MD; 9/3/25 ... The American Society of Clinical Oncology and the World Health Organization recommend that every patient with advanced cancer should be treated by a multidisciplinary palliative care team early in the course of the disease and in conjunction with anticancer treatment. Despite the documented benefits and the recommendations, early PC is still not often offered in clinical practice.