Early Integration of Palliative Care into Standard Oncology Care: Evidence and Overcoming Barriers to Implementation

In Canada, widespread discussion of medical aid in dying (http://www.parl.gc.ca/HousePublications/Publication. aspx?DocId=8120006) has had an important by-product: a much needed opportunity to review how well we are doing with respect to appropriate and timely access to the provision of expert palliative care for individuals with life-limiting illnesses. In the field of oncology, palliative care has long been embedded in the patient care paradigm. But even within oncology, recent research has suggested that there is much to improve. When should referral to palliative care be made and for which patient groups? What are the key discussions and interventions that palliative medicine brings to cancer care? What is the impact of earlier care on patient and family outcomes? In other words, what should be the optimal standard for integration of palliative care into oncology care?