Susannah K. Kish

Dyspnea in cancer patients: Etiology, resource utilization, and survival-Implications in a managed care world

Dyspnea is the fourth most common symptom of patients who present to the emergency department (ED) at The University of Texas M. D. Anderson Cancer Center and may, in some patients with advanced cancer, represent a clinical marker for the terminal phase of their disease. This retrospective study describes the clinical characteristics of these patients, the resource utilization associated with the management of dyspnea, and the survival of patients with this symptom.

Characteristics of cardiac arrest in cancer patients as a predictor of survival after cardiopulmonary resuscitation.

Despite advances in cardiopulmonary resuscitation and the education of its providers, survival remains dismal for cancer patients suffering in‐hospital cardiac arrest. In an effort to determine if characteristics of cardiac arrest would represent a useful parameter for prognostication and recommendations regarding the suitability of ongoing resuscitation for various groups, this review was undertaken for patients who experienced in‐hospital cardiac arrest.

END-OF-LIFE DECISIONS IN CANCER CARE

End-of-life decisions in critically ill patients with cancer are often complex and fraught with emotion. End-of-life care involves a multidisciplinary approach that takes into account the patient and familys desires and the goals of therapy. Decisions regarding the use of life-support technology at the end of life encompass an outcomes and goal-oriented approach. Ethical, medical, legal, and economic issues should be considered in the assessment of life-support technologies and directives for their appropriate use in the ICU.