ArticlePloS one2019
Quality of life and symptom intensity over time in people with cancer receiving palliative care: Results from the international European Palliative Care Cancer Symptom study.
Article in PloS one, 2019. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 44 papers, 2 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
44 citing papers in PubMed, 2 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 84 citations in OpenAlex.
- Caregivers' Perceptions of End-of-Life Care in Brazil: A Qualitative Systematic Review.Revista brasileira de enfermagem · 2026Pooled it
- Psychosocial interventions and health-related quality of life in adults with incurable cancer: systematic review.BMJ supportive & palliative care · 2025Pooled it
- Nutritional Impairment and Quality of Life Trajectories Among Older Adults With Advanced Cancer.Journal of the American Geriatrics Society · 2025Trial
- Increasing Readiness for Early Integrated Palliative Oncology Care: Development and Initial Evaluation of the EMPOWER 2 Intervention.Journal of pain and symptom management · 2021Trial
- Quality of life and associated factors among cancer patients receiving palliative care in Western Uganda: a cross-sectional study.BMC palliative care · 2026Article
- Unclear boundaries: Family caregivers' invisible role in home-based palliative care in Norway: an exploratory analysis of secondary data from two previous studies.International journal of nursing studies advances · 2026Article
- How Does Symptom Management Affect Quality of Life in Palliative Care Patients? A Descriptive and Correlation Study.Scandinavian journal of caring sciences · 2026Article
- The clinical relevance of sleep disturbance ("insomnia") in patients with advanced cancer receiving palliative care: a scoping review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2026Article
- Article
- Effect of dignity therapy on meaning in life scores of cancer patients in palliative care.Palliative & supportive care · 2025Article
- Health Outcomes and Symptom Intensity Over Time among Cancer Patients Receiving Palliative Care in Vietnam: A Prospective Cohort Study.Asian Pacific journal of cancer prevention : APJCP · 2025Article
- The transition from oncology to palliative care: barriers and facilitators explored through an integrative review.BMC palliative care · 2025Review
- Associations Between Symptom Complexity and Acute Care Utilization Among Adult Advanced Cancer Patients Followed by a Palliative Care Service.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2025Observational
- Healthcare Professionals' Knowledge, Attitudes and Practices Toward Providing Artificial Nutrition and Hydration for Patients With Terminal Cancer.Journal of human nutrition and dietetics : the official journal of the British Dietetic Association · 2025Article
- Enhancing nursing's role in community-based palliative care: closing gaps to improve patient outcomes.BMC nursing · 2025Article
- Handling missing values in patient-reported outcome data in the presence of intercurrent events.BMC medical research methodology · 2025Article
- Associated factors of home hospice care utilization by the terminally ill older adults: a mixed-methods study.Frontiers in public health · 2025Article
- Quality of Life in People With HIV at the End of Life: Preliminary Results From the Last Gift Observational Cohort Study.Journal of acquired immune deficiency syndromes (1999) · 2025Observational
- Quality of life and pain severity changes over time in patients with breast cancer who were referred for palliative oncology treatment in Indonesia: a hospital-based cohort study.Frontiers in global women's health · 2025Article
- The family talk intervention prevent the feeling of loneliness - a long term follow up after a parents life-threatening illness.BMC palliative care · 2024Article
Corrections and comments
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Authors and funding
6 authors at 3 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundPeople with advanced cancer experience multiple symptoms during their illness trajectory, which can fluctuate in intensity.
aimTo describe the course of self-reported quality of life, emotional functioning, physical functioning and symptom intensity over time in cancer patients receiving palliative care.
designLongitudinal study with monthly assessments, using the EORTC QLQ-C15-PAL. Data were analysed (1) prospectively, from baseline to ≥8-month follow-up; and (2) retrospectively, by taking death as index date and comparing results from three cross-sectional subsamples at different stages of illness (time to death ≥6, 5-3 and 2-0 months). Linear mixed models were calculated. SETTING/
participantsA total of 1739 patients (mean age 66, 50% male) from 30 palliative care centers in 12 countries were included.
resultsIn prospective analyses, quality of life, functioning and symptoms-except nausea/vomiting-remained generally stable over time. In retrospective analyses, patients 2-0 months before death reported significantly lower quality of life and physical functioning scores than those 5-3 months before death, who in turn scored lower than those ≥6 months before death, suggesting progressive decline. Emotional functioning remained initially unchanged, but decreased in the last months. Pain, fatigue and appetite loss showed a stable increase in intensity towards death. Dyspnea, insomnia and constipation increased from 5-3 to 2-0 months before death. Nausea/vomiting only increased when comparing those ≥6 months before death with those 2-0 months before death.
conclusionWhile the prospective approach showed predominantly stable patterns for quality of life, functioning and symptom severity throughout study duration, retrospective analyses indicated that deterioration was already apparent before the terminal phase and accelerated close to death. Our findings support the importance of early symptom identification and treatment in this population, and highlight the need for further studies to explore what characterizes those with either lower or higher symptom burden at different time points towards death.
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