palliative care

Definition / meaning of palliative care

Care given to improve the quality of life of patients who have a serious or life-threatening disease. The goal of palliative care is to prevent or treat as early as possible the symptoms of a disease, side effects caused by treatment of a disease, and psychological, social, and spiritual problems related to a disease or its treatment. Also called comfort care, supportive care, and symptom management.

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Find More About 'palliative care'

Source(s):

The Web site of the National Cancer Institute (http://www.cancer.gov/)

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