The word transition can mean a passage from one place to another. The transition or change from looking toward recovery to receiving end-of-life care is not an easy one and there are important decisions to be made. If you become too sick before you have made your wishes known, others will make care and treatment decisions for you, without knowing what you would have wanted. It may be less stressful for everyone if you, your family, and your health care providers have planned ahead for this time.
The goal of end-of-life care is to prevent suffering and relieve symptoms. The right time to transition to end-of-life care is when this supports your changing condition and changing goals of care.
There are certain times when you may think about stopping treatment and transitioning to comfort care. These include:
- Finding out that the cancer is not responding to treatment and that more treatment is not likely to help.
- Having poor quality of life due to the side effects or complications of treatment.
- Being unable to carry out daily activities when the disease progresses.
Together with your doctor, you and your family members can share an understanding about treatment choices and when transition to end-of-life care is the best choice. When you make the decisions and plans, doctors and family members can be sure they are doing what you want.
For more information about the end of life, see the PDQ summary on Last Days of Life.