Abstract

BACKGROUNDDespite aggressive treatment with surgery and chemo-radiation therapy, it is difficult to cure patients with glioblastoma (GBM). The end-of-life (EOL) phase of patients with GBM, and related problems, have not yet been adequately studied. Most cancer patients died in the hospital (84%) in 2017, but the Japanese government has recommended palliative home-care and the number of deaths at home has recently been increasing. This study explores the current situation of EOL care for GBM patients in our hospital.METHODSWe retrospectively examined the clinical course and EOL phase of 166 consecutive patients who were treated in our hospital between 2010 and 2017.RESULTIn total, 107 patients died; 28 (26%) at home, 25 (23%) in hospice care, 9(9%) in nursing homes, 21(20%) in long-term care hospitals (LTCH), 13(12%) in our hospital, and 11(10%) in other neurosurgical hospitals. The median survival time and length of EOL phase for patients who died at home were 596 and 77 days; 469 and 103 days in hospice care; 528 days and 149 days in LTCH; 388 days and 52 days in our hospital; 802 and 91 days in other neurosurgical hospital; and 565 days and 55 days in nursing homes, respectively. The KPS of patients who transferred to LTCH or was started palliative care in other neurological hospital was 60. That of other patients was 50.The patients who died at home entered deep coma in the last 3.5 days (n=24) of life and could not take oral feeds for 7 days (n=26).CONCLUSIONAccording to cancer patient study, the home-based palliative time of longer prognosis group were 59 days. EOL phase of GBM may be longer than other cancer. We must consider the problems of the EOL phase and improve the quality of EOL care.

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