Table 1 Possible situations for referring children with cancer to a PPC specialista
On diagnosis | During the illness |
|---|---|
Child with a new life-threatening illness diagnosis | Treatment-resistant disease |
Extended intrinsic brainstem glioma | Progressive disease (e.g., new metastases) |
Stage IV neuroblastoma | Relapsed disease after remission |
Solid metastatic tumour | Resistant or recurrent disease after hematopoietic stem cell transplantation |
Any other type of tumour with an event-free survival (EFS) prediction of < 40% with current therapies | Exposure to life-threatening complications (e.g., organ failure, prolonged intubation) |
New diagnosis with difficult pain management or other symptoms | Development of new and significant toxicity related to treatment and/or psychosocial stress |
Prolonged hospitalisation (over 3 weeks) without evidence of clinical improvement | Prolonged admission to intensive care (over 1 week) without evidence of clinical improvement |