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Tumor Discovery

ORIGINAL RESEARCH ARTICLE
Prognostication in palliative cancer care: Both

probabilities and uncertainties must be taken
into account

Erik Torbjørn Løhre 1,2,3 * , Ragnhild Hansdatter Habberstad 1 , Tora Skeidsvoll
Solheim 1,2 , Pål Klepstad 4,5 , Gunnhild Jakobsen 1,6 , and Morten Thronæs 1,2,3
1 Cancer Clinic, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
2 Department of Clinical and Molecular Medicine, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences,
NTNU–Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
3 Centre for Crisis Psychology, Faculty of Psychology, University of Bergen, Bergen, Norway
4 Clinic of Anesthesiology and Intensive Care Medicine, St. Olavs Hospital, Trondheim University
Hospital, Trondheim, Norway
5 Department of Circulation and Medical Imaging, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences,
NTNU–Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway
6 Department of Public Health and Nursing, Faculty of Medicine and Health Sciences,
NTNU–Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway

Abstract
Prognosticating survival in palliative cancer patients has been a longstanding
*Corresponding author:
Erik Torbjørn Løhre challenge. While different tools and approaches may ease prognostication,
(erik.t.lohre@ntnu.no) biological variability limits their accuracy. Assessment of physical status is
Citation: Løhre ET, important for prognostication, along with evaluating the degree of systemic
Habberstad RH, Solheim TS, inflammation and patient-reported symptom burden. The distribution of survival
Klepstad P, Jakobsen G, was examined among palliative cancer patients with different functional status
Thronæs M. Prognostication
in palliative cancer care: Both (Eastern Cooperative Oncology Group Performance Status), inflammation-related
probabilities and uncertainties markers (modified Glasgow prognostic score [mGPS]), and self-reported symptom
must be taken into account. intensities (the eleven-point numeric rating scale [0 – 10]). Physical status and
Tumor Discov. 2025;4(3):46-57.
doi: 10.36922/td.8576 biomarkers of systemic inflammatory responses yielded important prognostic
information in patients with advanced cancer. Among 147 hospitalized patients,
Received: January 17, 2025 median survival was longer for those continuing anti-cancer treatment, those with
Revised: May 1, 2025 better functional status, and those with normal levels of C-reactive protein and/or
Accepted: May 14, 2025 albumin. Regarding the functional status categories, patients with PS 2 exhibited
the widest range of survival. All categories, except PS 4, included patients with
Published online: July 2, 2025 actual survival of almost 1 year or more. In terms of inflammatory markers, the
Copyright: © 2025 Author(s). widest survival range was observed among patients with mGPS 0. All categories
This is an Open-Access article included patients with actual survival of more than half a year, and mGPS 0 and 1
distributed under the terms of the
Creative Commons Attribution included patients with survival of more than one and a half years. No statistically
License, permitting distribution, significant differences in survival were identified between patients with mild and
and reproduction in any medium, higher intensities of the symptoms under investigation. A wide range of survival
provided the original work is
properly cited. outcomes at the group level makes prognostication for individual patients
particularly challenging.
Publisher’s Note: AccScience
Publishing remains neutral with
regard to jurisdictional claims in
published maps and institutional Keywords: Prognostication; Palliative cancer care; Probabilities and uncertainties
affiliations.

Volume 4 Issue 3 (2025) 46 doi: 10.36922/td.8576