Symptom control in a regional cancer centre: an innovative outpatient approach.

The number of patients per year diagnosed with cancer continues to increase dramatically; this growth is predicted to persist into the twenty-first century. Palliative care, working in conjunction with the family doctor, has shown that a significant and possibly cost-effective contribution to the care of these patients can be made through use of outpatient clinics and in-home service. The Ottawa Regional Cancer Centre initiated such a clinic in mid-1990; this report gives details of its first six months of operation and its first series of 25 patients. The provision of outpatient and home care services in most instances fulfilled the desires of both patient and family for a dignified and comfortable death in the patient's home.