There have been impressive improvements in the diagnosis and treatment of cancer in recent decades. In economically advantaged countries with well-developed healthcare systems over 50% of all cancer patients achieve long term survival and are probably cured. Not only has survival improved radically for cancer patients but also there has been an increasing focus on the quality of patient's lives, on improving the patient experience of care and on developing effective support for the very ma...

This is a clear, balanced overview of international experience with Voluntary Assisted Dying (VAD). It draws on medical literature, government reports, and official data from around the world to help inform public and professional discussion. It updates work conducted and published in 2020 in the book End of Life Choices for Cancer Patients.More than 280 million people live in countries where some form of assisted dying is legal. International evidence shows that with clear rules, ...

Increasing attention is being paid to the needs of cancer patients who present acutely with issues relating to their diagnosis an management, complications of their cancer, complications arising from their treatment, or who require appropriate symptom control or palliative care. Recent years have seen substantial service development to ensure acute oncology is appropriately provided, to improve outcomes and wellbeing of patients. A team of experts in cancer care have completely revised and...

The treatment of cancer in young women and men is increasingly turning from focusing purely on survival to a recognition of the long-term effects of treatment on subsequent quality of life. In this regard, fertility is a very high priority for patients. This is the first book to explain the latest techniques in fertility preservation. Chapters cover fertility preservation in both women and men, management of cancer in pregnancy, egg donation and surrogacy, hormone replacement options, coun...

A broad and experienced team, including medical oncologists and life scientists, have collaborated to produce this practical guide to cancer immunotherapy. It provides a compendium of best practice, including 23 case studies to act as models for professionals to make decisions, either for individual patients or as the basis for using immunotherapy across an organisation, planning area, region or country. As well as introducing all key concepts, expert practitioners provide a guide to futur...

This open access book provides a comprehensive overview of the health inequities and human rights issues faced by sex workers globally across diverse contexts, and outlines evidence-based strategies and best practices.Sex workers face severe health and social inequities, largely as the result of structural factors including punitive and criminalized legal environments, stigma, and social and economic exclusion and marginalization. Although previous work has largely emphasized an el...

Death, dying, loss, and care giving are not just medical issues, but societal ones. Palliative care has become increasingly professionalised, focused around symptom science. With this emphasis on minimizing the harms of physical, psychological, and spiritual stress, there has been a loss of how cultures and communities look after their dying, with the wider social experience of death often sidelined in the professionalisation and medicalisation of care. However, the people we know and love...

Public health approaches to palliative care have been growing in policy importance and practice acceptance. This innovative volume explores the major concepts, practice examples, and practice guidelines for this new approach.The goal of ‘comprehensive care’ – seamless support for patients as they transition between home based care and inpatient services – relies on the principles of health promotion and community development both to ensure services are available and importantly app...

A rapidly ageing population is the most significant demographic issue confronting Singapore in our lifetime. This has created new and increasing demands on Singapore's healthcare system and on the families of the older adults. The challenge is in providing a system of care that is humane, effective and sustainable financially. This requires coordination between state funded providers, the family and the community.This book offers a multi-disciplinary perspective by researchers from...

This edited volume provides an answer to a rising public health concern: what drives the over prescription of psychiatric medication epidemic? Over 15% of the UK public takes a psychiatric medication on any given day, and the numbers are only set to increase. Placing this figure alongside the emerging clinical and scientific data revealing their poor outcomes and the harms these medications often cause, their commercial success cannot be explained by their therapeutic efficacy.Chap...

Ageing populations mean that palliative and end of life care for older people must assume greater priority. Indeed, there is an urgent need to improve the experiences of older people at the end of life, given that they have been identified as the 'disadvantaged dying'. To date, models of care are underpinned by the ideals of specialist palliative care which were developed to meet the needs of predominantly middle-aged and 'young old' people, and evidence suggests these may not be adequate ...

Harm Reduction is a philosophy of public health intended as a progressive alternative to the prohibition of certain potentially dangerous lifestyle choices. Recognising that certain people always have and always will engage in behaviours which carry risks, the aim of harm reduction is to mitigate the potential dangers and health risks associated with those behaviours.Harm Reduction in Substance Use and High-Risk Behaviour offers a comprehensive exploration of the policy, practice a...