Author(s)

Annekathryn Goodman^1*, Nezamuddin Ahmad²

¹Division of Gynecologic Oncology, Massachusetts General Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, USA.
²Department of Palliative Medicine, Bangabandhu Sheikh Mujib Medical University, Dhaka, Bangladesh.

Introduction: Palliative care expertise is an important component of the comprehensive care of women with gynecologic cancers. Palliative care ranges from treatment of symptoms experienced by people with cancer such as constipation, nausea, anxiety, pain to careful and the skillful discussion of prognosis and goals of care. The purpose of this review is to summarize the basic issues in palliative care faced by healthcare providers caring for people with cancer and then focus on some examples of diagnostic and treatment dilemmas faced by gynecologic oncologists caring for women with recurrent cancers. Review Summary: Palliative and hospice care strategies are described. Palliative care refers to symptom management from diagnosis through active treatment, problems encountered by survivors, and concerns at the end of life. Hospice care pertains to care during the last six months of life and includes the alleviation of suffering of those dying from cancer and the support for family members. The symptoms at the end of life including pain, anorexia, and intestinal complications are reviewed. Palliative surgical procedures range from the drainage of pleural and abdominal fluid, including the management of intestinal obstruction via drains, diversionary procedures, or the creation of an ostomy. A comparison of outcomes between medical (when surgery was not feasible) and surgical management of bowel obstruction shows the average survival of 54 days compared to 193 days respectively. Conclusion: Gynecologic oncologists are uniquely positioned among other oncologists in managing intestinal obstruction, malignant ascites and pleural effusions, and oligometastatic recurrences where they must decide whether a medical or surgical approach will be effective in palliation and alleviation of suffering. The combination of traditional surgical gynecologic oncology training with palliative care is crucial to become the most effective clinician for each patient with advanced or recurrent gynecologic cancer.

Palliative Care Training, Palliative Surgery, Gynecologic Oncology, Ovarian Cancer, Intestinal Obstruction

Goodman, A. and Ahmad, N. (2023) Gynecologic Oncologic Surgery for the Palliation of Life-Limiting Cancer Crises—The Importance of Education and Training in Palliative Care for the Gynecologic Oncologist. Health, 15, 965-979. doi: 10.4236/health.2023.159065.