Palliative care is active total care offered to patients with progressive and advanced disease when the prognosis for survival is limited.
Palliative care intends neither to hasten nor postpone death.
Its purpose is to relieve suffering and help the patient and family achieve the best possible quality of life. Palliative care is best delivered by an interdisciplinary team which can provide integrated attention to physical, psychological, social, spiritual, and practical problems. Palliative care offers a support system to help relatives and friends cope during the patient's illness and bereavement. However, efforts to prolong life or to comfort are not necessarily mutually exclusive. Many patients who receive palliative care feel better and live longer than expected.