A cancer diagnosis can upend life in an instant. Even with strong medical support, treatment can bring physical discomfort, emotional strain, and a deep sense of uncertainty. Studies show cancer patients are five times more likely to experience depression than the general population, and caregivers often shoulder significant stress, too.1
Palliative care during cancer treatment provides an extra layer of support when you and your family need it most. Together with your oncologist and other providers, your palliative care team helps manage symptoms, support mental health, and simplify care, so you can stay present and focused on healing.
The Common Misconception: Palliative Care vs. Hospice for Cancer
Many people hear the word “palliative” and assume it means the same thing as hospice care. While both palliative care and hospice are essential cancer care support services, the difference lies in timing and goals: palliative care helps you live as well as possible during treatment, while hospice helps you live fully and comfortably when treatment is no longer the right path.
What Is Palliative Care?
Palliative care for cancer patients can start at diagnosis and continue throughout treatment, providing flexible cancer care support services that adjust as your needs change. The goal is to help you feel as well as possible by easing symptoms, improving comfort, and supporting emotional and spiritual well-being.
What Is Hospice Care?
Hospice care is for patients nearing the end of life who are no longer pursuing curative treatment. To qualify, a physician must certify that a patient likely has six months or less to live if the illness follows its expected course. Instead of trying to slow or stop the disease, hospice shifts the focus to comfort and dignity.
The Physical Challenges of Cancer and Treatment
Cancer and its treatments can cause a wide range of physical symptoms that affect daily life, from nausea and vomiting to pain and shortness of breath. Palliative care focuses on easing those symptoms and improving day-to-day comfort.
Pain Management
Almost half of cancer patients experience pain.2 This pain can come from the cancer itself, as well as from surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation. Palliative care for cancer patients includes advanced pain management strategies, from medication adjustments to supportive therapies, to help reduce discomfort.
Nausea and Appetite Loss
Cancer treatment can cause nausea and changes in appetite, making it difficult to consume enough calories. Palliative care for cancer patients provides medication support, nutrition tips, and simple strategies to help you stay nourished.
Fatigue
Low energy is one of the most common side effects of cancer and treatment, with nearly 80% of patients reporting significant fatigue.3 Palliative care teams will work with you to identify causes, support rest, and help you maintain a daily routine.
Breathing Difficulties
Shortness of breath can be caused by cancer, treatment, and/or related anxiety. It can feel frightening and exhausting. Palliative care helps ease breathing difficulties through medication, calming techniques, and oxygen support when needed.
Other Side Effects
Cancer and its treatments may also cause neuropathy, constipation, sleep changes, skin irritation, or cognitive “fog.” By addressing the full spectrum of side effects, palliative care helps preserve your quality of life.
How Palliative Care Supports Cancer Patients
Palliative care for cancer patients provides relief from symptoms, guidance through difficult decisions, and other cancer care support services.
Expert Symptom Management
Palliative care specialists work alongside your oncologist to help address challenging symptoms like nausea and fatigue. The palliative care team may support your comfort by adjusting medications, recommending supportive therapies, suggesting lifestyle and nutritional strategies, and providing tools to manage symptoms at home.
Coordinating Complex Care
Cancer treatment often involves multiple specialists, which can quickly become overwhelming for patients to manage alone. Palliative care for cancer patients helps reduce stress and prevent gaps in care by coordinating communication among providers, helping organize appointments and medications, and serving as a central point of support when questions arise.
Emotional and Psychological Support
The emotional toll of cancer is heavy; research shows the risk of developing a new mental health condition increases by 30% in the first year after diagnosis.4 When patients receive palliative care during cancer treatment, they are met with compassionate emotional support, such as professional counseling and spiritual care.
Guidance With Difficult Decisions
Cancer care often requires tough decisions, such as weighing chemotherapy against surgery or deciding whether to continue aggressive treatment. With palliative care for cancer patients, you don’t have to navigate those choices alone. Your palliative care team helps you make sense of your options and choose what best reflects your values and goals.
Support for the Whole Family
Palliative care teams support caregivers by explaining treatment plans in plain language, answering tough questions, and helping loved ones understand what symptoms and changes to expect. They can also connect family members to counseling and bereavement support.
When to Consider Palliative Care for Cancer
Many people think palliative care is something you only request in the final stages of cancer. However, research shows that introducing palliative care early in the cancer journey leads to better symptom control, less distress, and care that more closely aligns with a patient’s goals and values.5
At Diagnosis — Especially With Advanced Cancer
When cancer is first diagnosed, it can feel overwhelming, especially if the disease is already advanced and decisions need to be made quickly. Receiving cancer care support services early can help you process information, ask informed questions, and communicate what matters most to you.
When Treatment Side Effects Are Overwhelming
Cancer treatment can bring challenging side effects like fatigue, nausea, appetite changes, pain, and shortness of breath. When these symptoms start impacting quality of life, palliative care during cancer treatment can help you feel more comfortable.
When Facing Difficult Medical Decisions
Cancer often brings decisions that can feel impossibly difficult, especially around treatment choices and quality-of-life goals. Palliative care for cancer patients offers a supportive space to talk through these decisions, understand medical information in plain language, and weigh risks and benefits.
When Managing Other Health Conditions
Many people undergoing cancer treatment also live with chronic conditions such as heart disease, COPD, or diabetes. Palliative care for chronic illnesses helps keep all aspects of your care connected. The team coordinates with your specialists, monitors medications, and streamlines complex treatment plans so your day-to-day feels more manageable.
When You or Your Family Need Emotional Support
Cancer can bring a spectrum of emotions, from fear about the future to frustration with how life has changed. To help you process these feelings, your palliative care team can offer support services like counseling and spiritual care.
You don’t need to wait for a crisis to explore palliative care. Seeking cancer care support services early allows you to stay ahead of symptoms, plan thoughtfully, and feel more grounded during a time filled with unknowns. When it comes to palliative care, there’s truly no such thing as “too early.”
What Palliative Care Looks Like for Cancer Patients
Palliative care for cancer patients is focused on helping you maintain the best possible quality of life. Here’s what that support can look like in practice:
In-Home Visits and Flexible Care Options
Many people receive palliative care as home care, with support provided right where they live—whether that’s a private residence, assisted living community, or skilled nursing facility. It can also be received during a hospital stay, and some programs offer clinic or telehealth visits for added flexibility.
Working Alongside Your Oncology Team
When you receive palliative care during cancer treatment, your palliative care team works closely with your oncology team. They stay in touch about your treatment plan, whether you’re receiving palliative care alongside chemotherapy, immunotherapy, or another therapy.
Comprehensive Services for the Whole Person
Palliative care isn’t just about managing symptoms—it’s about supporting the whole person through a wide range of cancer care support services, including emotional and spiritual support, nutrition guidance, medication management, and assistance with advance care planning.
24/7 Access to Care and Reassurance
When you’re receiving palliative care during cancer treatment, it’s likely you’ll have questions or needs that arise outside of typical office hours. Many programs offer 24/7 access to support, so you’re never left to navigate concerns on your own.
Transitioning to Hospice Care When the Time Comes
For many people, palliative care transitions to hospice when treatment is no longer effective or aligned with their goals. Because palliative care and hospice share a focus on comfort and quality of life, this shift often feels like a natural next step—not a sudden change in direction.
In many programs, the same organization that provides palliative care also offers hospice care, meaning your care team may continue with you through this transition. If a different hospice provider is involved, your palliative care team will communicate your care preferences and coordinate details such as medications, equipment, and home support.
Palliative care teams also support families during this transition by connecting them to counseling or respite resources and walking them through practical matters like caregiving schedules, insurance, and community support services.
FAQs
Will my oncologist be upset if I seek palliative care?
Not at all. Palliative care for cancer patients is designed to work alongside your oncology team, not replace it.
Is palliative care only for advanced cancer?
No. Palliative care isn’t limited to late-stage illness. Many patients receive palliative care alongside chemotherapy and other curative treatments.
How is this different from my oncology team’s care?
Your oncology team focuses on treating the cancer itself, while palliative care focuses on easing the physical and emotional effects of cancer and treatment.
Does insurance cover palliative care for cancer?
In most cases, yes. Private insurance, Medicare, and Medicaid typically cover palliative care for cancer patients. Coverage may vary based on your plan and where you receive care, so it’s helpful to contact your insurance provider or care team to confirm your benefits.
Feel Supported Through Every Step of Cancer Care
The weeks and months after a cancer diagnosis can feel overwhelming. Fortunately, you don’t have to carry this alone. Palliative care adds an extra layer of support, helping you manage symptoms, navigate uncertainty, and stay focused on what matters most.
At Carolina Caring, our palliative medicine team walks beside you and your loved ones through every phase of care. We collaborate closely with your oncology team to ease discomfort, reduce stress, and provide practical and emotional support, so you feel more prepared and less alone.
If you or someone you love is navigating cancer, we’re here to help. Reach out to Carolina Caring today.
Sources
- The Ohio State University Comprehensive Cancer Center. (2025, July 15). New survey shows cancer anxiety has impact well beyond individual diagnosed. https://cancer.osu.edu/news/new-survey-shows-cancer-anxiety-has-impact-well-beyond-individual-diagnosed
- Snijders, R. A. H., Brom, L., Theunissen, M., & van den Beuken-van Everdingen, M. H. J. (2023, January 18). Update on prevalence of pain in patients with cancer 2022: A systematic literature review and meta-analysis. Cancers, 15(3), Article 591. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC9913127/
- Asefa, T., Bitew, G., Tezera, H., & Tesfaye, W. (2024, November 1). Prevalence of cancer-related fatigue, associated factors, and adult cancer patients’ experiences at Hawassa University Comprehensive Specialized Hospital in Ethiopia: A mixed-methods study. Frontiers in Oncology, 14, Article 1480246. https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11563971/
- Mehnert-Theuerkauf, A., Hufeld, J. M., Esser, P., Goerling, U., Hermann, M., Zimmermann, T., Reuter, H., & Ernst, J. (2023, April 19). Prevalence of mental disorders, psychosocial distress, and perceived need for psychosocial support in cancer patients and their relatives stratified by biopsychosocial factors. Frontiers in Psychology, 14.
- Howie, L., & Peppercorn, J. (2013). Early palliative care in cancer treatment: Rationale, evidence, and clinical implications. Therapeutic Advances in Medical Oncology, 5(6), 318–323.
