Hearing the words “palliative care” can bring up a lot of questions. You may wonder what it means for the future, whether cancer treatment is coming to an end or whether someone is nearing the end of their life.
Palliative care can be offered at any point when someone needs additional support with symptoms, treatment side effects, emotional wellbeing or everyday life. It can also be provided alongside treatment intended to cure or control the cancer.
What matters is the person’s needs rather than their cancer stage alone.
If you’re living with cancer or supporting someone close to you, this guide explains what palliative care means, when it may be introduced and how support at home can fit alongside the person’s existing healthcare.
What is palliative care for cancer?
Palliative care is support for someone living with a serious or life-limiting illness. For people with cancer, it can help manage symptoms and side effects while supporting comfort, quality of life and emotional wellbeing.
It can include support with things such as pain, sickness, breathlessness and fatigue. Depending on the person’s needs, it may also involve practical support at home, help with equipment, emotional support or support for family members.
The person themselves should remain at the centre of this care. Their preferences, priorities and what matters to them in everyday life are all important.
Palliative care and cancer treatment can happen at the same time. Someone can receive palliative care while also having chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy or surgery intended to treat or control their cancer.
It’s also important to distinguish palliative care from end-of-life care. End-of-life care is one part of palliative care, provided when someone is approaching the end of their life. It isn’t another name for palliative care as a whole.
As the NHS explains, hospice care is not only for people who are dying.
When might palliative care begin?
Cancer staging helps doctors understand the size of a cancer and whether it has spread. It can help guide treatment decisions, but it doesn’t tell you exactly when someone will need palliative care.
Someone may be offered palliative care:
- Around the time of diagnosis: This can happen when symptoms are difficult to manage or when someone has an advanced cancer.
- During cancer treatment: Palliative care can help with symptoms, treatment side effects or the emotional impact of living with cancer, even when treatment is intended to cure the cancer.
- If the cancer changes: Someone may need additional support if their cancer returns, spreads or becomes more difficult to control.
- When priorities change: Palliative care can also become more important when someone decides not to have further cancer treatment and the focus shifts towards comfort and quality of life.
There can be a lot of variation between people. Two people with the same type and stage of cancer may have very different symptoms, support needs and priorities.
That’s why the conversation about palliative care should focus on the individual rather than simply asking what stage their cancer is at.
If you think palliative care could help, you can talk to the person’s GP, cancer team or district nurse. You don’t necessarily need to wait for someone else to raise the subject.
Macmillan explains more about palliative care and cancer, including when someone may be referred for support.
Can palliative care happen alongside cancer treatment?
Yes. Palliative care can be provided alongside treatment such as chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy or surgery.
The cancer team continues to manage the cancer treatment, while palliative care can help with the symptoms and concerns that affect everyday life.
That might mean helping someone manage pain so they can sleep more comfortably, finding ways to cope with tiredness or sickness, or having someone to talk to about the emotional side of living with cancer.
Support at home can also make everyday life easier.
When someone is tired or recovering from treatment, a carer can help with washing and dressing, preparing meals, getting around the home, keeping up with everyday routines and providing companionship. Depending on the care plan, they may also provide support with medication routines.
This can give the person more time and energy for the things that matter to them, whether that’s seeing family, enjoying a meal together or simply having a comfortable day at home.
Trinity provides cancer care at home through visiting and live-in care, working alongside the healthcare professionals already involved.
The aim is to support what the person can do for themselves rather than taking over unnecessarily.
When does palliative care become end-of-life care?
Palliative care can be part of someone’s care for a long time. If their illness progresses and they approach the end of their life, their care may gradually become more focused on comfort, dignity and the things that matter most to them.
There isn’t always a clear point when one type of care ends and another begins.
The NHS describes someone as approaching the end of life when they may be in the final 12 months of their life, although it isn’t always possible to predict this accurately.
As circumstances change, the person’s healthcare team should continue talking with them and their family about what they want and what support would help.
Importantly, care doesn’t stop when cancer treatment stops. There can still be plenty of support for symptoms, comfort, practical needs and emotional wellbeing.
For someone who wants to remain at home, this may involve their GP, community nurses, specialist palliative care services and professional carers working together.
At home, the GP has overall responsibility for the person’s care and can arrange community nursing support. Specialist palliative care professionals can also advise on managing symptoms and providing additional support.
If someone needs continuous care throughout the day and night, 24-hour care at home may be appropriate. This is different from standard live-in care, where the live-in carer has regular breaks and overnight rest.
Who is involved in palliative care?
There isn’t one fixed team for everyone. The people involved will depend on what the person needs and the support available locally.
This may include:
- The person’s oncologist or cancer specialist
- A clinical nurse specialist
- Their GP
- District or community nurses
- Specialist palliative care doctors and nurses
- Occupational therapists or physiotherapists
- Social workers or counsellors
- Hospice professionals
- Professional home or live-in carers.
Each person has a different role.
Healthcare professionals remain responsible for clinical decisions and treatment. A professional carer can provide personal care, practical help and companionship, while keeping an eye on how the person is managing day-to-day and raising any concerns with the appropriate professional.
At Trinity, our palliative care at home can provide visiting or live-in support alongside the healthcare professionals already involved in someone’s care.
We take time to understand the person’s needs, preferences and routines, and care is reviewed as those needs change.
What support is available for families?
Cancer affects more than the person who has been diagnosed. If you’re supporting someone close to you, you may be managing appointments, practical tasks and care alongside your own work, family life and emotions.
It’s important that you have support too.
Someone to talk to
Hospices and palliative care services may offer support groups or one-to-one support for family members.
The Macmillan Support Line and Marie Curie Support Line can also provide information and support.
Practical help
If you’re providing a lot of care yourself, you may be able to ask your local council for a carer’s assessment.
Professional care can also give family members some time back. Respite care at home can provide additional support while you take a break, go to work or simply spend time with your loved one without having to manage every practical task.
Support after bereavement
Support doesn’t necessarily end when someone dies. Hospices and other organisations may offer bereavement support for family members and friends.
Marie Curie, for example, offers a free bereavement support service.
Your healthcare team can also tell you what support is available in your local area.
Palliative care at home with Trinity
Choosing care at home is a personal decision. For some people, being able to remain in familiar surroundings, close to the people and things they love, is particularly important.
Our role is to understand what matters to the person and what support would make life at home easier.
Trinity has provided care at home for 30 years, including support for people living with cancer and those receiving palliative or end-of-life care.
We offer both visiting and live-in care. Depending on what someone needs, this could include personal care, practical support, companionship, help with everyday routines and support for family members.
Our care managers remain involved throughout the arrangement, coordinating care and reviewing the plan when circumstances change. Where more complex needs are involved, our clinical team can provide additional oversight alongside the person’s own healthcare professionals.
We also understand that being kept informed matters to families. With the person’s consent, relatives can use TrinityConnect to view care notes and visit records when they can’t be there themselves.
Trinity Homecare is rated Outstanding overall by the Care Quality Commission. You can read more about how our care is regulated.
Frequently asked questions
Does palliative care mean someone is dying?
No. Palliative care can be offered at different stages of cancer and can continue alongside treatment.
It can help with symptoms, treatment side effects, emotional wellbeing and quality of life. End-of-life care is one part of palliative care and is provided when someone is approaching the end of their life.
At what stage of cancer is palliative care usually recommended?
There is no set stage. Someone may be offered palliative care from diagnosis onwards if they need additional support with symptoms, treatment side effects or emotional wellbeing.
The timing depends on the person’s circumstances and what support they need, rather than their cancer stage alone.
Can you have palliative care alongside chemotherapy or other cancer treatment?
Yes. Palliative care can be provided alongside chemotherapy, radiotherapy, immunotherapy or surgery.
The cancer team continues to manage the cancer and its treatment, while palliative care can provide additional support with symptoms, side effects and quality of life.
What’s the difference between palliative care and end-of-life care?
Palliative care is broader and can be provided at different points during an illness. It focuses on comfort, symptom management and quality of life.
End-of-life care is the care provided when someone is approaching the end of their life. It is one part of palliative care.
Who provides palliative care?
Palliative care can involve several different professionals, depending on what someone needs. This may include their GP, cancer team, community nurses, specialist palliative care professionals, therapists and professional carers.
Each person has a different role, with clinical decisions remaining with the relevant healthcare professionals.
Talk to us about palliative care at home
You don’t need to know exactly what kind of care you need before you get in touch.
If you’re thinking about palliative care for yourself or someone close to you, our care experts can listen to what’s happening and talk through what support at home could look like.
Call 0207 183 4884 for a free, no-obligation conversation, Monday to Friday, 8am to 6pm, or Saturday, 10am to 4pm.
You can also make an online enquiry and a member of our team will be in touch.
