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Deciding
to stop treatment is not one decision.
There are many types of treatment and hence, many decisions
patients make about the care they want.
Whatever the decisions about unwanted treatments, everyone still
has the right to be as comfortable as possible.
It is important to ask for what is needed to be comfortable.
For example, many cancer patients have pain.
It is important to ask for pain medication to treat the pain and
prevent it, whether you are getting any other treatment or not.
Treatments
people decide they do not want include:
- Surgery
- Radiation
therapy
- Chemotherapy
- IV
fluids or tube feedings
- Medications
Deciding
to stop or not have a treatment can be controversial. Patients have to decide what is best for them and their
family. Discuss the pros and
cons of each type of treatment as it relates to your cancer at any given
point in time with your health care providers.
Be
prepared with other support sources when chemotherapy or radiation
treatment stops .
When
chemotherapy or radiation treatments end or are discontinued, frequent visits to the
doctor’s office, clinic, or hospital decrease too.
This is a hard time for patients and their family. You do not get
to see the treatment team as often. They
may have been an important lifeline during difficult times. You can become overwhelmed if you
try to face this new transition alone.
Ask for support from your family, friends, church, or other cancer
patients through this difficult
time.
Advance Directives and DNRs
Make sure that your family and your medical team is clear
about how you want to proceed with your care.
This may entail writing an “advance directive.” Also called a
“living will,” an advance directive is an important legal document
used to express your wishes about end of life care.
In an advance directive you document the care you do or do not
want, who will make decisions for you if you cannot make them yourself,
and how the decisions will be carried out.
You
may make the decision that you do not want resuscitation. Your doctor will
write at the patient or family’s direction a DNR order.
DNR stands for “Do Not Resuscitate”.
This means if you stop breathing or your heart stops, doctors and
nurses will not perform cardiopulmonary resuscitation (CPR) to get your
heart beating again.
Read
more about creating your own advance directive, DNR orders and where to find resources
by clicking here.
Written by Linda Miller, RN, MA
Edited by Rachael Myers Lowe, cancerpage.com
This page was last edited on 04/18/2008
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