Does it hurt to let yourself die from cancer (no chemo)? originally appeared on Quora: the place to gain and share knowledge, empowering people to learn from others and better understand the world.
Answer by David Chan, MD from UCLA, Stanford Oncology Fellowship, on Quora:
Every cancer situation is different. Some cancers are more associated with pain than others. Pancreatic cancer can be particularly bad when it grows into nerves near the back of the pancreas. But I’ve had many patients with pancreatic cancer where pain wasn’t a problem.
Instead, like many other patients with advanced cancers, they became weaker and more frail as their cancer worsened, then became wheelchair and then bed bound.
Cancers metastatic to bone are often painful but in some cases the discomfort is mild or more severe pain can be relieved with radiation therapy.
There are specialists who assist in managing cancer symptoms.
The most frequent outcome when cancer patients die is that whatever pain they have is controlled with narcotics and or sedatives.
There often comes a point in poorly treatable cancer situations that the treatment is as bad or worse than the disease. Everyone should understand the goals of chemotherapy as well as potential side effects and common complications.
Almost everyone is willing to try chemotherapy if there is a meaningful chance for cure. Many patients decline chemotherapy for low odds of benefit especially if they have gotten very weak or have other symptoms that make their quality of life very poor.
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Source:-forbes.