Cure palliative

Il termine "palliativo" deriva da pallium, che nella Roma antica designava il telo di lana che si poggiava su una spalla e si drappeggiava intorno al corpo, per proteggerlo. Nella medicina moderna questo termine ha purtroppo assunto un significato vagamente negativo, di rimedio sostitutivo, inadatto a risolvere del tutto un problema di salute. Il marito di una paziente ci ha detto: "Non vogliamo cure palliative. Vogliamo medicina, non carità!". Si dimentica invece che con esso si designa tutto un complesso di cure, che sarebbe più appropriato definire "di supporto". Le cure palliative non sono rimedi inefficaci, al contrario. Studi clinici testimoniano la loro validità anche in termini di sopravvivenza e di miglioramento della qualità di vita. Nonostante molti medici siano convinti che le cure palliative aiutino molto, essi le prescrivono generalmente troppo tardi. Le cure palliative si prefiggono di mantenere la qualità della vita e il diritto alla vita del paziente sino alla morte, di alleviarne le sofferenze, nel rispetto dei suoi desideri e delle necessità fisiche, psicologiche, morali, sociali, esistenziali e culturali.

The first edition of this book was the first authoritative, systematic and comprehensive text to define the increasingly important and evolving specialty of paediatric palliative care. It explores both the clinical aspects and the multidimensional and holistic nature of care for the dying child, based on the knowledge that all human experience has a physical, emotional, psychological and spiritual impact. The book covers ways of providing support in all of these areas both for the child, families, and carers, recognising the importance of teamwork and taking an evidence-based approach. The Oxford Textbook of Palliative Care for Children is about the care of children for whom cure of their underlying disease is not possible. It encompasses the physical management of symptoms such as pain and nausea, as well as social issues such as accessing appropriate education, emotional issues such as techniques for communication, and spiritual issues such as feelings of guilt and isolation. The book suggests that if we are to maintain the quality of life for a child it is essential to recognise all these dimensions and try to address them. This can only be done by recognising the skills of a wide range of professionals and working together in ways that are not always intuitive to any one discipline. It explores the multidimensional and holistic nature of care for the dying child. Those working in paediatric palliative care recognise that all human experience has emotional, psychological and spiritual impact as well as physical, and this book offers the essential information needed for those involved in paediatric care to find ways of providing support in all of these areas. Comprehensive in scope, exhaustive in detail, and definitive in authority, this second edition has been thoroughly updated to cover new practices, current epidemiological data and the evolving models that support the delivery of palliative medicine to children. Paediatric palliative care is now developing in countries with differing health care systems, and being adapted to suit individual illnesses and the varying resources and geography in different parts of the world. This book is an essential resource for anyone who works with children worldwide.

Handbook of Pain and Palliative Care:Biobehavioral Approaches for the Life Course Rhonda J. Moore, editor This book takes both a biobehavioral and a lifespan approach to understanding long-term and chronic pain, and intervening to optimize patients' functioning. Rich in clinical diversity, chapters explore emerging areas of interest (computer-based interventions, fibromyalgia, stress), ongoing concerns (cancer pain, low back pain), and special populations (pediatric, elderly, military). This coverage provides readers with a knowledge base in assessment, treatment, and management that is up to date, practice strengthening, and forward looking. Subject areas featured in the Handbook include: a- Patient-practitioner communication a- Assessment tools and strategies a- Common pain conditions across the lifespan a- Biobehavioral mechanisms of chronic pain a- Pharmaceutical, neurological, and rehabilitative interventions a- Psychosocial, complementary/alternative, narrative, and spiritual approaches a- Ethical issue and future directions With the rise of integrative perspective and the emphasis on overall quality of life rather than discrete symptoms, pain management is gaining importance across medical disciplines. Handbook of Pain and Palliative Care stands out as a one-stop reference for a range of professionals, including health practitioners specializing in pain management or palliative care, clinical and health psychologists, public health professionals, and clinicians and administrators in long-term care and hospice.

Il volume descrive il rivoluzionario "metodo Gorter", un approccio integrativo e non tossico alla cura del cancro a cui ogni giorno si affida un numero sempre maggiore di pazienti. Basato su lunghi anni di ricerche e sperimentazioni cliniche, il metodo punta a rafforzare il sistema immunitario attraverso la terapia della febbre (ipertermia), l'inoculazione di cellule dendritiche, l'uso del vischio (viscum album) e di integratori alimentari, oltre che tramite cambiamenti decisivi nella dieta e nello stile di vita. Organizzato in tre parti, il libro offre una panoramica dettagliata del trattamento, illustrando le ricerche che hanno portato al suo sviluppo e delineando le principali strategie per rafforzare la risposta immunitaria. Sono riportate inoltre diverse testimonianze di pazienti, molti dei quali sono sopravvissuti ben oltre la propria prognosi, ottenendo in alcuni casi una remissione completa e duratura della malattia. Il libro si rivolge sia ai medici che al largo pubblico.

As a palliative medicine physician, you struggle every day to make your patients as comfortable as possible in the face of physically and psychologically devastating circumstances. This new reference equips you with all of today's best international approaches for meeting these complex and multifaceted challenges. In print and online, it brings you the world's most comprehensive, state-of-the-art coverage of your field. You'll find the answers to the most difficult questions you face every day...so you can provide every patient with the relief they need.

The first truly interdisciplinary book on supportive oncology and palliative care returns with a new edition that serves as a practical guide to the management of the myriad symptoms and quality-of-life issues that occur in patients with cancer--including newly diagnosed patients, patients undergoing treatment, cancer survivors, and patients whose disease is no longer curable. The interdisciplinary group of contributors includes leading experts in hospice care and palliative medicine, oncology, nursing, neurology, psychiatry, anesthesiology, and pharmacology. This completely revised edition features new chapters on caregiver stress, hepatic failure, pulmonary failure, research issues in palliative care, and beginning a palliative care program. Content has been aligned with the needs of today's palliative care fellowship programs and includes additional tables, algorithms, and flow charts.

This brand new edition pulls together the most up-to-date information on this complex, multidisciplinary area in a practical, user-friendly manner. It deals with the important social and psychological aspects for palliative care of people with incurable diseases including quality of life, communication and bereavement issues.

Given that treatment with curative intent is possible in only one-half of cancer victims, and that such treatment frequently fails, the majority of patients with cancer will require relief of symptoms and signs caused by their disease. In this book, the specific contribution of radiation therapy to palliation is considered within the context of multidisciplinary management. Individual chapters are devoted to palliative radiation therapy for primary tumours and metastases at different sites. The management of pain is discussed, and chapters are also devoted to end of life care, the management of complications of radiation therapy, and useful medications. This book will prove useful to radiation oncologists and medical students.

In particolare, in ambito pediatrico, il controllo del dolore richiede un approccio scientifico ma al tempo stesso personalizzato per rispondere ai bisogni specifici dei bambini di età differenti e con patologie di svariata natura e complessità. Garantire la qualità della vita, obiettivo primario delle cure palliative, richiede che tutti coloro che si prendono cura del bambino e della sua famiglia siano consapevoli della necessità di mantenere attiva e aggiornata la cultura del dolore, diffondendola per non negare opportunità terapeutiche, farmacologiche e non farmacologiche, limitando così la sofferenza legata all'esperienza della malattia cronico-degenerativa. Questo volume può essere un valido strumento di approfondimento e aggiornamento non solo per tutti coloro che operano nell'ambito delle cure palliative pediatriche, ma anche per i professionisti di altri settori che si impegnano quotidianamente per contrastare la sofferenza inutile dei bambini.

Dall'introduzione di Dino Amadori e Franco De Conno e dalla presentazione di Italo Penco Dopo le edizioni del 2003 e del 2007,