Methadone rotation for cancer pain: an observational study.

Context: Methadone is a useful option in the treatment of cancer pain. Despite its advantages, methadone use is complicated due to high interindividual variability in pharmacokinetics. Various rotation methods from other opioids have been proposed in mostly Caucasian populations.

A review of whole brain radiotherapy outcomes in a high epidermal growth factor receptor mutation rate population: Does QUARTZ apply in Asia?

Aim: Whole brain radiotherapy (WBRT) is commonly used to treat brain metastases (BM) from nonsmall cell lung cancer (NSCLC). Its utility is increasingly being questioned after a recent randomized trial (QUARTZ) showed that its omission did not significantly impact the survival or quality of life of their patients recruited from UK and Australian centers. We report the patient characteristics and survival outcomes of our local population in comparison with theirs.

PROgnostic Model for Advanced Cancer (PRO-MAC).

Objective: To develop and validate a simple prognostic tool for early prediction of survival of patients with advanced cancer in a tertiary care setting.

Design: Prospective cohort study with 2 years' follow-up.

Setting: Single tertiary teaching hospital in Singapore.

Automatic referral to standardize palliative care access: an international Delphi survey.

Purpose: Palliative care referral is primarily based on clinician judgment, contributing to highly variable access. Standardized criteria to trigger automatic referral have been proposed, but it remains unclear how best to apply them in practice. We conducted a Delphi study of international experts to identify a consensus for the use of standardized criteria to trigger automatic referral.

Referral Criteria for Outpatient Palliative Cancer Care: A Systematic Review.

Background: Outpatient palliative care clinics facilitate early referral and are associated with improved outcomes in cancer patients. However, appropriate candidates for outpatient palliative care referral and optimal timing remain unclear. We conducted a systematic review of the literature to identify criteria that are considered when an outpatient palliative cancer care referral is initiated.

Value of the Palliative Performance Scale in the prognostication of advanced cancer patients in a tertiary care setting.

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the prognostic value of the Palliative Performance Scale (PPSv2) in the palliative care unit of our hospital, which sees more than 1500 referrals a year (both inpatient and outpatient). We evaluated 356 admission episodes into our department, focusing mainly on patients with advanced cancer. The PPS has been shown to be useful in prognostication and this study confirms this in a fairly large study population in a tertiary care, teaching hospital.