Evidence map›Paper›PMID 40285379›Full record

ArticlePalliative medicine2025

Exploring older people's end-of-life care preferences over time: A scoping review.

Lucy Robinson, Felicity Dewhurst, Amy Huggin, Daniel Stow, Charlotte Stenson, Elizabeth Westhead, Katie Frew, Barbara Hanratty, Paul Paes

Abstract readScoping Review
In one paragraph

Article in Palliative medicine, 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.

0numbers the graph read from it
0cells of the map it votes in
5citing papers in PubMed, 1 pooled it
–field-weighted citation impact
1 · What the graph read from it

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.

2 · The registry

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.

3 · Its place in the literature

Who cites it

5 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.

  1. Pooled it
  2. Attitudes to earlier advance care planning: a qualitative interview study in general practice.The British journal of general practice : the journal of the Royal College of General Practitioners · 2026
    Article
  3. Review
  4. Article
  5. Article
4 · The record

Corrections and comments

PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.

5 · Who and what money

Authors and funding

9 authors.

Lucy RobinsonFaculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-8169-8708
Felicity DewhurstFaculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.ORCID 0000-0001-9648-5329
Amy HugginFaculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
Daniel StowWolfson Institute of Population Health, Queen Mary University of London, London, UK.
Charlotte StensonFaculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.ORCID 0000-0002-2009-3238
Elizabeth WestheadFaculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.ORCID 0009-0003-3233-5155
Katie FrewFaculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
Barbara HanrattyNewcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.
Paul PaesFaculty of Medical Sciences, Newcastle University, Newcastle upon Tyne, UK.

Funding

No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.

6 · The paper itself

Abstract

backgroundUnderstanding the evolution of end-of-life preferences over time is important for dynamic, person-centred palliative care. This is particularly relevant for older people whose preferences can be incompletely expressed and subject to change.

aimTo summarise the nature of the current evidence about how and why the end-of-life preferences of older people change over time.

designA scoping review was performed, using a predefined protocol and following the JBI manual for evidence synthesis. DATA SOURCES: Final searches of Medline, Embase, PsycINFO and Web of Science were carried out in October 2023. Reference lists were also reviewed. Eligibility criteria included studies recruiting people over the age of 60 that explored how or why end-of-life preferences developed over time.

resultsScreening identified 52 articles, reporting on 40 studies. A majority were longitudinal studies collecting quantitative data about treatment preferences. Other preference categories included euthanasia, balancing quality and length of life, goals of care, preferred place of death, decision-making and spiritual preferences. Studies explored a variety of factors that may influence preference change or stability. There was a lack of research with ethnic minority groups and people aged over 80.

conclusionsExisting research has focused on preferences about specific therapies, at the expense of understanding what matters most to older people. Synthesis of the available evidence about why preferences change will guide reviews of patients' advance care plans. To inform dynamic, person-centred end-of-life care we need studies prospectively exploring how older people construct a broader range of preferences, and negotiate these over time.

Indexed as

Palliative CarePatient PreferenceTerminal CareAgedAged, 80 and overFemaleHumansMaleMiddle AgedAdvance care planningagedpalliative carepatient-centered carepatient preferencereview

Identifiers

PMID40285379
PMCPMC12102515

What OpenQuestion holds

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Registered trials

None linked

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.