[Home should be "a place for cancer patient to live a better life"].

There is still a perception that the home is a place for cancer patient to return to die when no treatment is left any more. However, home chemotherapy can be a useful option for symptom control. Thus, the perception of going home when no treatment is available sounds odd. Home should be a place for cancer patient to live a better life. Moreover, as the number of hospital beds has been decreasing all over Japan, an improvement in homecare may allow acute care hospitals to focus on their essential duties. Homecare requires a regional cooperation among various professionals. In the city of Akita, an original homecare network has been established through organizing conferences and workshops to bring together professionals from many different fields and to promote cooperation among them.