ReviewBMC palliative care2025
Current trends in antimicrobial use and the role of antimicrobial stewardship in palliative oncology: a narrative review.
Review in BMC palliative care, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 3 papers.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
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
3 citing papers in PubMed.
- A Retrospective Review of Antimicrobial Usage and Indications at End-of-Life for Oncology Patients in a Tertiary Cancer Center in Saudi Arabia.Saudi medical journal · 2026Article
- Factors Influencing Antimicrobial Choice and Duration During the Last Month of Life in Hospitalized Patients.Open forum infectious diseases · 2025Article
- A case-control study of end-of-life antimicrobial use in Non-hospitalized hospice patients in the United States.Antimicrobial stewardship & healthcare epidemiology : ASHE · 2025Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
4 authors.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe overuse of antimicrobials is prevalent in palliative oncology care, with up to 86.9% of terminal cancer patients receiving these agents during end-of-life care. This overutilization stems from recurrent infections due to immunosuppression, malnutrition, and frequent hospitalizations, as well as difficulty differentiating infection-related symptoms from cancer-related complications. DISCUSSION: Antimicrobial use in palliative cancer care offers limited symptomatic relief while posing significant risks, including Clostridioides difficile infections, multidrug resistance, and patient dissatisfaction. The lack of clear survival benefit highlights the need for judicious antimicrobial use, particularly in terminally ill patients. Effective antimicrobial stewardship strategies, such as integrating infection management into goals-of-care discussions, early referrals to specialized palliative care teams, and implementing early intravenous-to-oral antimicrobial switches, are critical for balancing patient comfort and minimizing unnecessary antibiotic exposure.
conclusionOptimizing antimicrobial use in palliative oncology care requires a multidisciplinary approach that prioritizes patient-centered goals, minimizes harm, and addresses misconceptions about antibiotic efficacy in end-of-life care. Antimicrobial stewardship programs, when tailored to palliative settings, play a vital role in reducing overuse and improving care quality in this vulnerable patient population.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.