Cancer patients’ insights and experience of palliative and supportive care in the UAE: a qualitative study - Scorecard - MDSpire

Cancer patients’ insights and experience of palliative and supportive care in the UAE: a qualitative study

  • By

  • Khalifa Mohammad AlOlama

  • Salem Omar Alameri

  • Yasin Wissi

  • Waleed Mezher Alabdli

  • Hamad Hisham AlHammadi

  • Ahmed Gabr AlDhaheri

  • Mariam Ali AlNaqbi

  • Mahmoud Ahmed Elshafey

  • Nour Abushousha

  • Abdullah Humaid O. Al-Shamsi

  • Sarah Humaid O. Al-Shamsi

  • Mohammed Humaid O. Al-Shamsi

  • Ahmad Tariq Kalantar

  • Albesher Y.Alfoteih

  • Abdulrahman Mahmoud Basioni

  • Wessam Alkrad

  • Siddig Ibrahim Abdelwahab

  • Amal Al Balushi

  • Faryal Iqbal

  • Neil Arun Nijhawan

  • Humaid O. Al-Shamsi

  • May 14, 2026

  • 0 min

Share

Clinical Scorecard: Perspectives and Experiences of Cancer Patients Regarding Palliative and Supportive Care in the UAE: A Qualitative Analysis

At a Glance

CategoryDetail
ConditionPalliative Care in Cancer Management
Key MechanismsImproves quality of life, alleviates suffering, and integrates early with disease-directed therapies.
Target PopulationCancer patients and their caregivers in the UAE.
Care SettingOncology healthcare settings, specifically the Burjeel Cancer Institute in Abu Dhabi.

Key Highlights

  • General lack of initial awareness about palliative care among patients.
  • Cultural beliefs and family dynamics significantly influence decision-making.
  • Insurance coverage plays a crucial role in accessing palliative care services.
  • Participants reported positive experiences with multidisciplinary care.
  • Communication difficulties and language barriers were common challenges.

Guideline-Based Recommendations

Diagnosis

  • Enhance public awareness of palliative care services.

Management

  • Integrate palliative care early alongside disease-directed therapies.

Monitoring & Follow-up

  • Regular assessment of patient and caregiver experiences to improve services.

Risks

  • Limited access to care outside hospital settings and regulatory restrictions on medications.

Patient & Prescribing Data

Cancer patients requiring palliative care in the UAE.

Timely specialist palliative care improves quality of life and reduces aggressive end-of-life interventions.

Clinical Best Practices

  • Implement multidisciplinary palliative oncology teams.
  • Address cultural taboos around discussing death and prognosis.
  • Facilitate better provider-patient communication.

Related Resources & Content

Original Source(s)

Cancer patients’ insights and experience of palliative and supportive care in the UAE: a qualitative study

  • by Khalifa Mohammad AlOlama, Salem Omar Alameri, Yasin Wissi, Waleed Mezher Alabdli, Hamad Hisham AlHammadi, Ahmed Gabr AlDhaheri, Mariam Ali AlNaqbi, Mahmoud Ahmed Elshafey, Nour Abushousha, Abdullah Humaid O. Al-Shamsi, Sarah Humaid O. Al-Shamsi, Mohammed Humaid O. Al-Shamsi, Ahmad Tariq Kalantar, Albesher Y.Alfoteih, Abdulrahman Mahmoud Basioni, Wessam Alkrad, Siddig Ibrahim Abdelwahab, Amal Al Balushi, Faryal Iqbal, Neil Arun Nijhawan, Humaid O. Al-Shamsi

  • May 14, 2026

Related Content

Glioblastoma, IDH-wildtype, with a novel MEF2D-NTRK1 gene fusion: a case report

Recurrent pleuropulmonary blastoma type III initially misclassified as embryonal rhabdomyosarcoma on limited biopsy: a case report with pathogenic DICER1 variant

Bilateral renal metastasis following radical prostatectomy for prostate cancer: a case report