Supportive Care: The “Keystone” of Modern Oncology Practice

SIMPLE SUMMARY: This article provides an overview of supportive care in cancer, a service that supports people living with and beyond cancer through the prevention and management of the side effects of their disease and its treatment. Supportive care is relevant throughout the entire cancer journey from diagnosis, through treatment, to care after treatment. This article discusses the definition of supportive care and explores relevant concepts, including its relationship with palliative care. It also discusses models of care, “core” service elements, evidence of the benefits of supportive care (including economic benefits), and future directions and challenges in providing supportive care for all patients diagnosed with cancer. ABSTRACT: The Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer (MASCC) defines supportive care as “the prevention and management of the adverse effects of cancer and its treatment. This includes management of physical and psychological symptoms and side effects across the continuum of the cancer journey from diagnosis through treatment to post-treatment care. Supportive care aims to improve the quality of rehabilitation, secondary cancer prevention, survivorship, and end-of-life care”. This article will provide an overview of modern supportive care in cancer, discussing its definition, its relationship with palliative care, models of care, “core” service elements (multi-professional/multidisciplinary involvement), the evidence that supportive care improves morbidity, quality of life, and mortality in various groups of patients with cancer, and the health economic benefits of supportive care. The article will also discuss the current and future challenges to providing optimal supportive care to all oncology patients.