Transfusion in Hospice-Palliative Care

In hospice and palliative care, transfusion is a complex issue that is viewed as either a futile life-prolonging treatment or a therapeutic intervention for symptom relief.These differing views render consistent clinical decision-making difficult.In terminally ill patients, anemia-related fatigue and dyspnea are typically multifactorial in origin.Consequently, the benefits of transfusion vary across individuals and may be limited and transient [1].Furthermore, because transfusion requires adequate infrastructure, staffing, patient observation, monitoring, and safety management, its availability is not uniform across hospice care settings.Although it is feasible in some hospice units within general or tertiary hospitals, access remains limited in many other hospice facilities and home hospice settings because of institutional and structural constraints.Accordingly, decisions regarding transfusion in terminally ill patients should be guided not only by clinical considerations but also