Topics in Palliative Care Volume 2

The rapidly evolving field of Palliative Care focuses on the management of phenomena that produce discomfort and that undermine the quality of life of patients with incurable medical disorders. The interdisciplinary clinical purview includes those factors - physical, psychological, social, andspiritual - that contribute to suffering, undermine quality of life, and prevent a death with comfort and dignity. Palliative Care is a fundamental part of clinical practice, the "parallel universe" to therapies directed at cure or prolongation of life. All clinicians who treat patients with chroniclife-threatening diseases are ingaged in palliative care, continually attempting to manage complex symptomatology and functional disturbances. The scientific foundation of palliative care is advancing, and similarly, methods are needed to highlight, for practitioners at the bedside, the findings of empirical research. TOPICS IN PALLIATIVE CARE has been designed to meet the need for enhanced communication in this field. To highlight the diversity of concerns in palliative care, each volume of the TOPICS IN PALLIATIVE CARE Series is divided into sections that address a range of issues. Addressing aspects of symptom control, psychosocial functioning, spiritual or existential concerns, ethics, and other topics, thechapters in each section review the given area and focus on a small number of salient issues to analysis. The authors present and evaluate existing data, provide a context drawn from both the clinical and research settings, and integrate knowledge in a manner that is both practical and readable. Thespecific topics covered in Volume 2 are Neuropathic Pain, Cachexia/Anorexia, Asthenia, and Psychological Issues in the Caregiver.

I. Neuropathic PainR. Portenoy: Introduction: Neuropathic Pain: From Unresolved Questions to Clinical Practice1. D. Moulin: Neuropathic Cancer Pain: Syndromes and Clinical Controversies2. Alejandro Jadad: Opioids in the Treatment of Neuropathic Pain3. D.J. Hewitt, R. Portenoy: Adjuvant Drugs for Neuropathic Cancer Pain4. T. Crammond: Invasive Techniques for Neuropathic PainII. Cachexia/AnorexiaE. Bruera: Introduction: Anoresia: An Evolving Understanding5. G. Ma, H.R. Alexander: Prevalence and Pathophysiology of Cancer Cachexia6. C. Loprinzi: The Pharmacological Manipulation of Appetite7. R. Fainsinger: Practical Considerations in the Management of Cachexia/Anorexia8. N. MacDonald: Ethical Issues in Hydration and NutritionIII. AstheniaR. Portenoy: Introduction: Asthenia: Definitions and Dimensions9. H. Neuenschwander: Pathophysiology of Cancer Asthenia10. J.F. Cleary: The Reversible Causes of Asthenia in Cancer PatientsIV. Psychological Issues in the CaregiverI. Higginson: Introduction: Defining the Unit of Treatment11. M. Loscalzo, J.R. Zabora: Care of the Cancer Patient: Response of Family and Staff12. M. Vachon: Staff Burnout: Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention13. H. Chochinov, L. Katz: Abnormal Bereavement: Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention14. C. Jenkins: Conflict between Family and Staff: Diagnosis, Management, and Prevention