Full Answer
What should I do if someone I care about doesn't continue cancer treatment?
If someone you care about has chosen not to continue their cancer treatment, be as supportive as you can. She may have already been met with resistance from her doctors and those closest to her. If her mind is made up, it won't help to add your voice to the debate.
Do cancer patients really need more treatment?
This tells us that the perceptions and fears associated with a cancer diagnosis may lead reasonable people to opt for more treatment, even if they are reassured that it is possible to watch and wait and that they may never need treatment.
What are the reasons to stop treatment for cancer?
Some reasons why you might consider stopping include: 1 Your cancer is advanced, and further treatment won’t make a big difference in how long you live. 2 You’ve tried multiple treatments that haven’t worked. 3 The risks or side effects of treatment outweigh the benefits.
Why don’t women want breast cancer treatment?
There are a plethora of reasons why a woman may not be willing to pursue or continue breast cancer treatment. Some may be transient and fade with time. Others are fully committed and made with a complete understanding of the implications of the refusal. Among some of the more common reasons for the refusal of breast cancer treatment:
What will happen if cancer is not treated?
The bottom line. Cancer can kill when tumors affect the function of major organs. Life threatening complications can also occur due to malnutrition, a weakened immune system, and lack of oxygen. Cancer treatments can prevent some of these complications, as well as disease progression.
Is it OK to refuse cancer treatment?
Refusing treatment is a personal decision that involves not just the medical facts of the case, but the values of the person afflicted with cancer. Although it can be hard to accept, sometimes refusing treatment is the right decision to make.
How Long Can cancer patient live without treatment?
The pooled mean survival for patients without anticancer treatment in cohort studies was 11.94 months (95% CI: 10.07 to 13.8) and 5.03 months (95% CI: 4.17 to 5.89) in RCTs.
Can you have cancer and not need treatment?
Myth: Everyone who has cancer has to have treatment A person who has cancer might choose to forgo treatment if he or she has: A slow-growing cancer. Some people who have cancer might not have any signs or symptoms.
Can you survive cancer without chemo?
It found that low-risk patients did well without chemotherapy. That study showed the test could select a cohort of patients with a 99 percent chance of five-year survival without distant metastasis. For those women, the risks of chemotherapy aren't justifiable.
Is it better not to have chemotherapy?
Because of chemotherapy's possible risks and side effects, it is not always recommended. Your oncologist may recommend avoiding chemotherapy if your body is not healthy enough to withstand chemotherapy or if there is a more effective treatment available.
What are the signs of a cancer patient dying?
Signs that death has occurredBreathing stops.Blood pressure cannot be heard.Pulse stops.Eyes stop moving and may stay open.Pupils of the eyes stay large, even in bright light.Control of bowels or bladder may be lost as the muscles relax.
How fast do cancer stages progress?
Scientists have found that for most breast and bowel cancers, the tumours begin to grow around ten years before they're detected. And for prostate cancer, tumours can be many decades old. “They've estimated that one tumour was 40 years old. Sometimes the growth can be really slow,” says Graham.
How do doctors know how long a cancer patient will live?
Ask your doctor about the stage of your cancer and how much it has spread. Ask about your prognosis, or how long you have to live. No one can know exactly, but your doctor should be able to tell you a range of months or years. And you need to know if more treatment for cancer will help you live longer.
How long can you survive stage 4 cancer without treatment?
Patients diagnosed in stage 4 who decide against treatment live an average of 6 months. In contrast, those diagnosed with stage 1A disease who elect no treatment live an average of two years.
Can you live with incurable cancer?
For some people, the cancer can be kept under control for months or years and people continue to live their normal daily life for some time. Most patients with incurable cancer will still see their cancer specialist.
When is cancer considered terminal?
Terminal cancer refers to cancer that can't be cured or treated. It's sometimes also called end-stage cancer. Any type of cancer can become terminal cancer.
Why do people with slow growing tumors feel the need to act?
This is because the word “cancer” makes the diagnosis feel urgent, and it is hard to feel like one is "doing nothing.".
Why is it important to hear the word "cancer"?
This is important because cancer treatment poses many risks for individuals, not the least of which are treatment-related side effects and long-term effects.
Can prostate cancer cause shortening of life?
In addition, we know that some cancers, such as prostate cancer, may not cause a person any serious harm or even shorten their lives if they are left untreated. The researchers in this study presented an imaginary scenario to volunteers using a web-based survey.
Can cancer be treated?
The researchers found that using the "cancer" label led many people to choose surgery. This tells us that the perceptions and fears associated with a cancer diagnosis may lead reasonable people to opt for more treatment, even if they are reassu red that it is possible to watch and wait and that they may never need treatment.
Why don't people want to have antibiotics?
Some people feel so tired and weak that they don’t want to have medicines that could extend their life. For example, someone who gets a severe infection could choose not to have antibiotics, even if they know that without them they will die very soon.
What is it called when you can't restart your heart?
Trying to restart them is called cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR). Of course, it might be very upsetting for you and your family to hear this.
Can you refuse treatment at the end of life?
Deciding to refuse treatment. Towards the end of life you might want to make some decisions about your care, including any instructions for refusing treatment. It can sometimes be very difficult to know what care and treatment to have when you are near the end of life.
Can you change your mind later?
You can change your mind later if you want to. In the UK, as an adult you can refuse medical care and treatment if you don't want to have it. Doctors can only give you treatment and medicines with your permission.
Can family accept you don't want further treatment?
It can sometimes be very hard for your family and friends to accept that you don’t want any further treatment. You could ask your doctor or nurse to talk to your family and explain how you feel, if this is a problem for you.
Can you refuse CPR?
You also have the right to refuse CPR. You can discuss your views about CPR with your healthcare team. You can tell them whether or not you want them to try it. The doctors take your wishes into account, but you can’t insist on having CPR. Your healthcare team can decide not to try it if they think it won’t work.
What happens after you stop cancer treatment?
For instance, after you stop treatment, a new drug may come to the market, a clinical trial could open, or you may hear of a doctor who has a new way of treating the cancer you have. If so, you can always decide to start treatment again. No matter what you choose, your health care team can provide emotional and physical comfort and care along ...
What to do if you are depressed?
If you’re depressed, you may lose focus on your goals. Before you decide, speak to a counselor, ask your doctor about starting depression medication, or both. Look at other options. Some people like to exhaust all possible avenues for treatment before they make up their mind.
What is low grade prostate cancer?
Low grade prostate cancer falls into that group. With small volume Gleason 6 or less, active surveillance with monitoring of PSA and periodic biopsies to establish stability have similar survival rates as surgery or radiation without the well known side effects.
Does prostate cancer require treatment?
Not every cancer requires treatment. Some cancers have a very long natural history and for people who are older (and I don't mean elderly) treatment may not be necessary, although careful monitoring is. Low grade prostate cancer falls into that group.
Why do people refuse breast cancer treatment?
Among some of the more common reasons for the refusal of breast cancer treatment: A period of adjustment: No one really knows how they will respond to a cancer diagnosis until they get one. Some people will panic, others will become resolute, and others still will need time to come to terms with the diagnosis before moving forward.
What religions discourage cancer treatment?
Matters of faith: Some religions, like Christian Science, discourage certain medical interventions necessary for cancer treatment. Even if this is not the case, a woman may feel comforted by entrusting her fate to nature or a higher power.
What is informed consent?
It involves discussing the potentials risks and benefits of a recommended treatment, as well as the risks and benefits of receiving no treatment.
Why do doctors dismiss complementary therapies?
They might even dismiss complementary or integrative therapies because they either don't believe in them or assert (reasonably) that certain approaches are not evidence-based .
Do medical caretakers have to advocate for the best interests of a child?
In fact, medical caretakers have an ethical and legal obligation to advocate for the best interests of a child when parental decisions are potentially dangerous. The same interventions do not apply to adults. Even a spouse cannot override a partner's refusal of treatment without an extraordinary court action.
Can a doctor refuse medical treatment?
There are few exceptions to your right to refuse medical treatment, however. In an emergency situation, doctors do have the right to intervene only to control the emergency. Unless there is a legal directive to prevent such treatment, such as a Do-Not-Resuscitate (DNR) order, the doctor has an obligation to step in, albeit in a specific capacity.
Is it an emergency if you have cancer?
Even if you are told your cancer is aggressive, it is not an "emergency," per se. Listen carefully to your prognosis and set aside time to think things through quietly, evaluating what you want and why. Seek a second opinion. A second opinion is not a rebuke of your oncologist.
Why do people decline chemotherapy?
Many patients decline chemotherapy for low odds of benefit especially if they have gotten very weak or have other symptoms that make their quality of life very poor. This question originally appeared on Quora - the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.
What happens when you die from cancer?
The most frequent outcome when cancer patients die is that whatever pain they have is controlled with narcotics and or sedatives. There often comes a point in poorly treatable cancer situations that the treatment is as bad or worse than the disease.
Can cancer be treated with radiation?
Cancers metastatic to bone are often painful but in some cases the discomfort is mild or more severe pain can be relieved with radiation therapy. There are specialists who assist in managing ...
Is pancreatic cancer bad for you?
Some cancers are more associated with pain than others. Pancreatic cancer can be particularly bad when it grows into nerves near the back of the pancreas. But I’ve had many patients with pancreatic cancer where pain wasn’t a problem. Instead, like many other patients with advanced cancers, they became weaker and more frail as their cancer worsened, ...
What happens if you don't treat breast cancer?
And if untreated, breast cancer universally becomes a fatal disease.
How to prevent breast cancer from coming back?
Answer: Well, the hope for women with early stage breast cancer is that by using surgery and radiation therapy and, where appropriate, chemotherapy and hormonal treatments, that we can help prevent the cancer from coming back.
Can breast cancer go away on its own?
It can happen over long periods of time, but if you don't have surgery and if you don't have other treatments, it doesn't go away on its own. That's why we recommend (to) people that they get appropriate medical treatment.
