Cancer Care
As outlined by Thomas Smith and Bruce Hillner in a now-classic piece, too many patients are subjected to punishing and futile treatments. Too much costly imaging is performed, for too little therapeutic benefit. Too often, costly supportive therapies, such as Epogen, that raise red blood cell counts are provided when they are not needed. The lack of easily used electronic health records aggravates fragmentation of care and perpetuates miscommunication and medical errors.
This isn’t an issue of rationing. America can amply afford the $125 b
illion we devote to cancer care. Cancer accounts for only about 5 percent of our nation’s $2.8 trillion health-care economy. Yet particularly in the case of advanced cancers, both patients and the wider society could receive greater value for what is spent. Many patients require care delivered with greater thoughtfulness: less-toxic treatment regimes that relieve suffering and protect quality of life when curative care is not possible.
Proper care also requires greater clarity and candor upfront — particularly when the prognosis is not what patients are hoping to hear. According to one recent survey of patients with metastatic cancer, “69% of patients with lung cancer and 81% of those with colorectal cancer did not report understanding that chemotherapy was not at all likely to cure their cancer.” False hope provides temporary comfort. It cannot provide the basis for a realistic or humane treatment plan, much less confidence and trust in the providers.
Full piece by Harold Pollack worth reading.
“69% of patients with lung cancer and 81% of those with colorectal cancer did not report understanding that chemotherapy was not at all likely to cure their cancer.”
Really? Do they not watch TV? I thought this was common knowledge.
In America you have the right to remain ignorant and uninformed. It is possible Maury or Judge Judy do not cover these issues.
Unfortunately, people need to be much more informed in order to keep our government in check.
Isn’t this the job of the hospital employees?
I’m a retired mechanic. I can tell you the firing order of a 1962 Chevy 350, but don’t expect me to know what chemo will and wont treat.
“The lack of easily used electronic health records aggravates fragmentation of care and perpetuates miscommunication and medical errors.”
ObamaCare is intended to address this with incentives to expand EHR use.
Obviously, EHR is plays a large role in the future of medical information, but there are significant privacy concerns. People need to be able to choose the doctor that practices in a way that they feel comfortable.
I agree. The mandates are ridiculous and will lead to other problems.
EHR is absolutely necessary
It is going to take a good deal of time to become an efficient/safe system.
We can afford it, but this inefficiency creates suffering elsewhere. Money means something, over-spending relative to benefit hurts people.
Sick and tired of all of this inefficiency.
False hope is very similar to everyone gets a trophy. We need to stop with the nonsense and get people the truth.
Does it catch anyone else by surprise that cancer accounts for only 5% of health care spending?
Thanks for noticing my work. Amy is amazing.