Not surprising' A British professor said the results were not surprising. Professor Ilora Finlay, of Holme Tower Marie Curie Cancer Care in Cardiff, told BBC News Online that palliative care was organised differently in Britain and the United States. In America they have more finance pressures. In Britain we have much more collaborative care between oncologists and palliative specialists. However it is very, very difficult to give an accurate prognosis.
People have to be realistic but it is dangerous to be under pessimistic or under optimistic.
The survey findings do not surprise me at all and it is good studies are being done into this. Severe implications Terminally ill patients may not get proper care because of inaccurate diagnoses Professor Nicholas Christakis and Dr Elizabeth Lamont from the University of Chicago Medical Center say their findings have severe implications. They say undue optimism about survival rate may contribute to late referral for hospice care and incur unnecessary medical expenses. They also suggest doctors who do not realise how little time is left for their patient may miss the opportunity of improving the quality of their remaining life. And Prof Christakis and Dr Lamont also say patients may request futile aggressive care, believing they have longer to live, rather than more beneficial palliative care.