Palliative & Supportive Care: Volume 21 - Issue 6

Pulchritudo ex machina: Beauty from the machine
Brian Robert Smith
Published online by Cambridge University Press:

11 November 2022, pp. 1091-1092
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Palliative care unit treatment and care for a terminal breast cancer patient with untreated obsessive-compulsive disorder
Eriko Hayashi, Tetsuya Matsuura, Junko Takano, Kaori Morofushi, Kaori Toriizuka, Fumiyasu Fukano, Hideki Onishi
Published online by Cambridge University Press:

12 July 2023, pp. 1097-1099
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Objectives
Although palliative care units treat patients with various comorbidities, there are no reports of patients with obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
Methods
The treatment and care of a breast cancer patient with OCD are presented.
Results
A woman in her 40s was admitted to the palliative care unit for terminal breast cancer. She spent most of the day cleaning the bath and bed areas, ignoring efforts to restrain her actions by the staff. After being diagnosed with OCD, the above symptoms improved through the coordinated action of the staff and medication.
Significance of results
This is the first report of the diagnosis and treatment of a patient with OCD in a palliative care unit. Early psychiatric diagnosis and subsequent staff response contributed to improvement in the patient’s quality of life.

Palliative & Supportive Care