Compared to suffering from other malignancies and other illnesses, women with cervical cancer—especially those with advanced disease-face more complicated and severe suffering. Palliative care aims to reduce this suffering by enhancing the patient’s quality of life while lowering the severity of their symptoms. The palliative care approach is well suited for patients suffering from gynecologic cancers, especially cervical cancers.
Cervical cancer specialists in Bhubaneswar play a vital role in palliative care for individuals with cancer by:
- Providing support through cancer management.
- Making a comprehensive assessment of the patient’s condition.
- Guide through pain and symptom management.
- Help patients make informed treatment choices.
- Provide emotional support, counseling, and psychosocial service referrals.
- Facilitate discussions about advance care planning.
What is Palliative Care?
Palliative care is a form of supportive care that helps people with cancer live better by taking care of their symptoms without trying to fix them. Despite popular belief, it can be helpful for cervical cancer patients at any stage of the disease, not just those near the end of life. This care lowers the spread of cancer and reduces pain and other symptoms. With palliative care, patients can strive to meet their psychological, social, emotional, cultural, practical, and spiritual requirements.
How Can Palliative Care Help?
Palliative care caters to each patient’s unique requirements, allowing it to tackle different problems such as:
- Physical: In terms of the body, common symptoms that can be treated include discomfort, exhaustion, lack of appetite, nausea, vomiting, difficulty breathing, and sleeplessness.
- Emotional And Coping Support: Cervical cancer specialists in Bhubaneswar can connect patients and their families with resources that can help reduce the emotional burden of coping with cancer diagnosis and treatment. Possible treatments may include:
- Counseling
- Communities of support
- Assistance in finding mental health professionals
- Spiritual: When cancer is diagnosed, people and their families seek deeper meaning in life. Cancer affects people differently; some think it strengthens their religion or spiritual views, while others can’t understand why it struck them. Through palliative care guidance, patients can explore their core values and beliefs in search of meaning and acceptance, regardless of their situation.
- Educating About The Condition: With your palliative care team’s support, you can better understand your condition and its potential future effects. With their assistance, you can look at all of your treatment options and make an informed decision about which one to pursue. Being well-informed allows you to make care decisions that align with your beliefs, objectives, and personal preferences.
- Caregiver Needs: When dealing with cancer, support from loved ones is invaluable. Like the patient, their needs change. Caregivers may feel overwhelmed by their extra duties. Many struggle to care for a sick loved one while working, cleaning, and caring for their family. Caregivers may also feel anxious about medical issues, lack of social support, and concern and fear. These challenges can harm caregivers. Palliative care can support families and friends.
- Practical Needs: Palliative care can help with financial, legal, insurance, and employment issues. It also includes discussing goals that cover advance directives and guiding family, caregiver, and cancer care team communication.
- Help Gain Social Support: Palliative care can establish a support system to ease the burden of the condition on both the patient and their loved ones. It may also help reduce some of the stress and strain many caregivers experience. Palliative care providers can connect you with local organizations and support groups. They can offer family counseling or help you communicate with family members.
Questions To Ask
To those who have never experienced palliative care before, the process can be filled with confusion. Consider asking the following questions to Cervical cancer specialist for better understanding:
- What kind of cancer am I dealing with, how bad is it, and how can I have it treated?
- What are the cancer symptoms?
- Does the treatment have side effects?
- How can palliative care help?
- What support am I offered?
- Does your clinic have palliative care specialists?
- Does my insurance cover palliative care?
- Who can assist me with mental, emotional, and financial issues?
- Can I get palliative care at home?
Conclusion
Patients with cervical cancer often have to deal with difficult symptoms. When it comes to treating cervical cancer holistically, palliative care is essential as it aims to improve patient’s quality of life while they deal with this difficult diagnosis. Cervical cancer specialists in Bhubaneswar play an important role in palliative care. Creating unique treatment programs for each patient helps relieve not just the patient’s physical symptoms but also their mental, social, and emotional distress.
Whether you are seeking cancer treatment, routine examinations, or issues regarding reproductive health, Dr. Ushashree Das is dedicated to supporting you at every turn. Contact us to set up an appointment.