Black patients with terminal cancer more likely to choose aggressive care at end of life

Black patients with terminal cancer more likely to choose aggressive care at end of life
whites to die in a hospital intensive.....

29 May 2008
CHICAGO—Black patients with advanced cancer were more likely than whites to die in a hospital intensive care unit, reflecting a greater preference among blacks for life-extending treatment even in the face of a terminal prognosis, according to a study led by researchers at Dana-Farber Cancer Institute in Boston. The findings (abstract 6506) will be presented at the annual meeting of the American Society of Clinical Oncology in Chicago on Monday, June 2, 3 - 6 p.m. CT, South Building, Hall100B.
"There is something different about the way black patients and white patients approach the end of life," Trice said, which may be based in cultural attitudes, religious beliefs, and how thoroughly they have been informed about and comprehend their prognosis, among other things.