Palliative Care

Psilocybin-assisted therapy yields large, durable reductions in depression and anxiety in palliative populations

This systematic review identified six small studies (74 adults, ages 22–75) with palliative care needs receiving psilocybin-assisted therapy. Across randomized and open-label trials, 57–79% achieved at least 50% reductions in standardized depression and anxiety scores. Symptom improvements generally persisted 6–8 months, with one follow-up suggesting benefits lasting up to 4.5 years. Adverse events were mostly mild and transient, including nausea, vomiting, and short-lived blood pressure or heart rate increases, with no serious events reported. Authors conclude psilocybin-assisted therapy appears effective and safe but stress the need for feasibility and implementation studies in routine palliative care. 1

Multidisciplinary neuro-palliative care in motor neuron disease improves coordination, advance directives, and survival

In 140 motor neuron disease patients, a structured multidisciplinary neuro-palliative taskforce markedly increased access to allied health and community support services. Occupational therapy, dietician, and speech therapy use were significantly higher in the multidisciplinary group, as were NGO community and bereavement supports. Advance Medical Directives were far more frequent with multidisciplinary care (46.94% vs 4.76%). Multidisciplinary care was associated with longer survival (HR 0.539), remaining significant after multivariable adjustment. Findings support embedding neuro-palliative teams within motor neuron disease services to improve planning and potentially survival. 2

Three-year simulation program strengthens pediatric fellows’ palliative communication skills and confidence

Pediatric hematology/oncology, critical care, and neonatology fellows completed repeated half-day simulations with standardized patients and debriefing across three fellowship years. Self-reported palliative communication self-efficacy and perceived adequacy of education improved significantly over time (both p<0.001). External raters documented significant gains across nine communication domains (p<0.001), demonstrating objective skill improvement. Most fellows rated simulations as realistic and useful and preferred them to lecture-based education. The curriculum suggests that longitudinal, simulation-based training can systematically build serious-illness communication capacity before independent practice. 3

Two-year mortality model flags incarcerated adults who may benefit from palliative care or compassionate release review

Among 89,430 incarcerated adults in California prisons, 506 natural deaths over two years informed a mortality prediction model. Predictors included demographics, housing level, mobility restriction, recent hospitalizations or ICU admissions, and chronic conditions. The internally validated model showed excellent discrimination at two years, with optimism-corrected AUC 0.926 and good calibration. At a 5% mortality threshold, specificity was 98.4%, with moderate sensitivity and a positive predictive value of 16.7%. Authors propose using this tool to trigger advance care planning, palliative referrals, and compassionate release evaluations. 4