End-of-life care for children with cancer
Quality of End-of-Life Care for Children with Cancer: A COG Observational Study
This project looks at what affects the quality of end-of-life care for children with cancer using medical records from pediatric cancer centers and surveys of bereaved parents.
Quick facts
| Grant type | R37 grant |
|---|---|
| Study type | NIH-funded research |
| Funding institution | University of Alabama at Birmingham NIH-funded |
| Lab location | 1 site (Birmingham, United States) |
| Project ID | NIH-11259453 on NIH RePORTER |
What this research studies
If your child has cancer, this project looks at the kinds of end-of-life care children receive across many pediatric cancer centers. Researchers will use the Children’s Oncology Group registry and review electronic health records to measure location of death, use of intensive treatments, and receipt of palliative care. They will also ask bereaved parents to complete surveys about their experiences, access to services, and stress. By comparing care measures with factors like access to care and family interactions with the health system, the team hopes to find patterns that could guide better, more supportive care.
Who could benefit from this research
Good fit: Ideal participants are families of children diagnosed with cancer who were enrolled in the Children’s Oncology Group Project EveryChild, especially those who experienced end-of-life care for their child.
Not a fit: Children without cancer, families treated outside the participating COG sites, or people not involved in pediatric end-of-life care are unlikely to be included or benefit directly.
Why it matters
Potential benefit: Results could help hospitals and clinicians provide end-of-life care that is more comfortable, less medically intense when preferred, and better matched to family wishes.
How similar studies have performed: Prior smaller studies and newly developed quality measures suggest palliative care improves some end-of-life outcomes in pediatric oncology, but large multisite studies like this are relatively new.
Where this research is happening
Birmingham, United States
- University of Alabama at Birmingham — Birmingham, United States (Active)
Researchers
- Principal investigator: Johnston, Emily Elizabeth — University of Alabama at Birmingham
- Study coordinator: Johnston, Emily Elizabeth
About this research
- This is an active NIH-funded research project — typically early-stage science, not a clinical trial accepting patient enrollment.
- Some NIH-funded labs run parallel clinical studies or seek volunteers for related work. To check, contact the principal investigator or institution listed above.
- For full project details, budget, and progress reports, visit the official NIH RePORTER page below.