Contribution of Eastern Mediterranean Region countries to palliative care journals from 1991 to 2020 and its relationship to the development of palliative care.

Background: Palliative care (PC) is in an early stage of development in the Eastern Mediterranean Region (EMR) of the World Health Organization. A metric based on publishing in specialized PC journals may be useful in assessing PC development. This study was conducted to describe the contribution of EMR countries to PC research and to study the relationship between this contribution and the levels of PC development.

The Use of Antidiabetic, Antihypertensive, and Lipid-lowering Medications in the Elderly Dying with Advanced Cancer.

Background: Maintenance of medications that are unconducive to the quality of life is difficult to justify in dying terminally-ill cancer patients.

Objective: We aimed at determining the prevalence of administering antidiabetic, antihypertensive, and lipid-lowering medications to elderly patients dying with cancer.

Methods: We reviewed the medical records of patients above 60 years of age with advanced cancer who died in a palliative care unit.

Validation of an Arabic Questionnaire for Symptom Assessment.

Background: Impeccable assessment of symptoms is central to palliative care (PC) practice.

Objectives: The study objectives are (1) to test the validity of the Arabic Questionnaire for Symptom Assessment (AQSA) as a self-administered (SA) tool for assessing the severity of the listed symptoms among PC patients and (2) to test the validity of AQSA when completed by a proxy.

Methods: The AQSA is a tool for assessing the severity of 11 symptoms in addition to the overall suffering experience on a 0 to 10 numeric scale.

Using Neuroleptics to Treat Delirium in Dying Cancer Patients at a Cancer Center in Saudi Arabia.

Neuroleptics are commonly used for treating delirium as a common problem in terminally ill cancer patients. However, prescribing patterns are believed to substantially vary among health professionals. The aim of this study is to determine the pattern of prescribing neuroleptics for treating delirium in cancer patients dying in a palliative care unit in Saudi Arabia.

Impact of bilateral breast cancer on prognosis: synchronous versus metachronous tumors.

Background: The clinical significance of bilateral breast cancer is unclear and its influence on prognosis is controversial.

Materials And Methods: Between 2005 and 2009 we identified 110 cases of bilateral breast cancer (BBC) ; 49 patients had synchronous (duration between the occurrence of carcinoma in both breasts was less than 12 months) and 61 had metachronous (duration was more than one year with no ipsilateral local recurrence). We compared the patient characteristics including age, menopausal status, clinical stage, tumor size, histological classification, lymph node status, and hormone receptor and Her-2 status.

The impact of implementing referra criteria on the pattern of referrals and admissions to a palliative care program in Saudi Arabia.

Referral criteria were developed to rationalize transfer-of-care requests and referrals to a hospital-based palliative care program (PCP) in Saudi Arabia. This study aimed to explore the impact of an approved referral criteria policy on the pattern of referrals to a PCP. Two periods, 19 months each, were identified: one before the implementation of the referral criteria (precriteria), and the other started 6 months later (post-criteria).

Hypercalcemia in advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma: prevalence and potential impact on palliative care.

Hypercalcemia is common in patients with advanced head and neck squamous cell carcinoma (HNSCC). In this study, hypercalcemia was detected in 46 (51%) of 90 eligible patients with HNSCC over 4 years. Compared with nonhypercalcemics, hypercalcemics were more likely to be referred to palliative care, while they were inpatients (P = 0.

Predictive impact of electrolyte abnormalities on the admission outcome and survival of palliative care cancer referrals.

Background And Aim: Electrolyte abnormalities are common among patients with advanced cancer. Our aim was to estimate the prognostic significance of such abnormalities in a palliative care setting.

Methods: A retrospective review of the medical records of inpatients with cancer referred to palliative care over a 25-month period.