end of life care

Christy O'Donnell, who has advanced lung cancer, is one of several California patients suing for the right to get a doctor's help with prescription medicine to end their own lives if and when they feel that's necessary.

California Judge Throws Out Lawsuit On Medically Assisted Suicide

5:35pm July 27, 2015

by April Dembosky

The superior court judge says questions raised in the case should be decided by legislatures or voters, not the court. The terminally ill plaintiffs say they'll appeal his decision.

For best quality of life, many cancer patients who can't be cured might do best to forgo chemo and focus instead on pain relief and easing sleep and mood problems, a survey of caregivers suggests.

What If Chemo Doesn't Help You Live Longer Or Better?

11:10am July 24, 2015

by Richard Harris

Terminal cancer patients sometimes get chemotherapy in the belief that it will ease their symptoms. But a study finds that many who get the treatment near death actually have a poorer quality of life.

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Maximum care at the end of life for cancer patients has increased.

Health & Safety

Intensive End-Of-Life Care On The Rise For Cancer Patients

1:04pm July 22, 2015

by Michelle Andrews

Researchers found that although the use of durable powers of attorney increased, so, too, has the number of people who received all possible care at the end of life.

In the movie The Fault in Our Stars, having terminal cancer doesn't look so bad for Hazel, played by Shailene Woodley, and Gus, played by Ansel Elgort.

Health & Safety

Teens Dying Of Cancer Face Intensive Treatments In The Final Days

8:02am July 10, 2015

by Ina Yang

Young cancer patients are more likely than older adult patients to be hospitalized or get chemo in the month before death, a study finds. Talking about end-of-life wishes is crucial, researchers say.

Nora Zamichow says if she and her husband, Mark Saylor, had known how doctors die, they might have made different treatment decisions for him toward the end of his life.

Knowing How Doctors Die Can Change End-Of-Life Discussions

1:54pm July 09, 2015

by Stephanie O'Neill

Dr. Ken Murray wrote an essay a decade ago about how the gentler care doctors choose at the end of life stands apart. His work still shapes how some doctors talk to patients about death.

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Jennifer Glass found out she had lung cancer four months after she got married. Here, her first round of chemo in February 2013.

'No One Should Have The Right To Prolong My Death'

7:14am July 09, 2015

by Robin Marantz Henig

Jennifer Glass was a newlywed when she was diagnosed with inoperable lung cancer. "I'm doing everything I can to extend my life," she says, while advocating for a right-to-die law in California.

A photo of Brittany Maynard, who moved to Oregon to end her life as she was dying of brain cancer, sits on the dais of the California Senate's health committee in March.

Lacking Votes, California Assembly Shelves Aid In Dying Bill

7:13am July 09, 2015

by Lisa Aliferis

Proponents of a bill that would let doctors give dying people lethal prescriptions ran into opposition from Latino Democrats. Backers say they're not through trying for approval.

Hawaii ranks 49th in the nation for use of home health care services during the last six months of someone's life. Videos from ACP Decisions show patients what their options are at the end of life.

Videos On End-Of-Life Choices Ease Tough Conversation

9:39pm June 17, 2015

by Ina Jaffe

A program in Hawaii aims to reduce the number of older people who spend their final days of life in a hospital. Hawaii has one of the highest rates of hospital deaths for those over age 65 in the U.S.

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Hope Barrone-Falk and J.D. Falk on their wedding day in 2009.

Coded Talk About Assisted Suicide Can Leave Families Confused

4:02pm May 22, 2015

by April Dembosky

In veiled conversations, some doctors may explain to dying patients how to hasten death. But overwhelmed families are left with profound questions and the feeling that no one can answer them.

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Of I Wish You the Sunshine of Tomorrow, Rodgers says: "The ICU room my dad was in on the day he died had yellow walls. Every time we visited him we had to wear hospital gowns that were a bright yellow. [It] was a recurring color in that whole time frame o

A Woman Uses Art To Come To Terms With Her Father's Death

3:24pm May 04, 2015

by Meredith Rizzo

Artist Jennifer Rodgers' father was hospitalized for seven months with sepsis before he died. She used the creative process to try to comprehend his suffering and her loss.