Futile Radiotherapy for Patients With Cancer Near the End of Life - Takeaways - MDSpire

Futile Radiotherapy for Patients With Cancer Near the End of Life

  • By

  • Alok Deshane

  • Morgan Freret

  • Victoria S. Brennan

  • Puneeth Iyengar

  • Daniel R. Gomez

  • Divya Yerramilli

  • Amy J. Xu

  • June 15, 2026

  • 0 min

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  • 1

    Palliative radiotherapy is often inappropriate for terminal cancer patients, failing to improve quality of life or survival at the end of life.

  • 2

    Implementation of a dedicated inpatient radiation oncology consult service was associated with reduced rates of futile radiotherapy at the end of life.

  • 3

    After IROC implementation, the rate of patients receiving radiotherapy decreased significantly from 31.7% to 20.2%.

  • 4

    Fewer patients experienced incomplete radiotherapy courses and hospital deaths after receiving inpatient radiotherapy post-IROC implementation.

  • 5

    The study suggests that specialized palliative consultation models may help reduce nonbeneficial treatments for patients with limited life expectancy.

Original Source(s)

Futile Radiotherapy for Patients With Cancer Near the End of Life

  • by Alok Deshane, Morgan Freret, Victoria S. Brennan, Puneeth Iyengar, Daniel R. Gomez, Divya Yerramilli, Amy J. Xu

  • June 15, 2026

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