Palliative care is available for anyone who has a progressive life-limiting disease.
The care required is determined by an individual patient's needs. Services are available that are age and culturally appropriate.
A specialist palliative care service can help provide:
- pain and symptom relief by providing medication and information about drugs
- practical advice and support for the woman and her family/carers
- temporary respite care to give carers some ‘time out’
- counselling and support groups for the woman and those close to her
- support with spiritual issues through referral to appropriate resources
- support in helping women and those close to her prepare for the later stages of secondary breast cancer, including understanding preferences for where she would like to die
- bereavement support for families and carers.
