Palliative care education and bioethics problems in period of cancer recuperation in mid-aged and elderly patients with terminal cancers

Abstract

There are two million new cases of malignant tumours and 1.5 million die of cancers in China each year. However, comprehensive recuperating measures for patients with cancers has been very less concerned in the community after discharging from hospitals providing them with therapies such as surgery, chemotherapy and radiotherapy etc. The study provided bioethical education on palliative care and held the deep interviews with 75 patients aged 39-88 suffering from various mid-terminal cancers in the Beijing Anti-Cancer Club. The majority of ten thousand members at the club have been greatly benefiting from doing exercise of a magical Qigong and interchanging information each other. Many ethical dilemmas and challenges in period of cancer recuperation and needs into palliative care have been addressed by the study. Great concern for these issues should be given in order to promote recuperation and improve life quality for the patients with cancers. The situation of informed consent in medical service, discrimination against patients with cancer among public due to fearing for cancer, requirements for palliative care in patients with terminal incurable tumours and too much individual cost for treatment of cancers will be discussed in the paper. (The study was sponsored by ―Help the Hospices‖ in UK).