Is palliative care available for children with serious illnesses?
Yes. Paediatric palliative care is available for children and young adults with life-limiting illnesses, with care planned around their physical, emotional, social, and spiritual needs.
Can family members receive support during palliative care?
Yes. Families can receive counselling and psychological support to help them cope with the emotional challenges associated with serious illness and bereavement.
Is palliative care only for people in the final stages of an illness?
No. Palliative care can be provided from the time of diagnosis of a serious or life-threatening illness, alongside treatments intended to control or treat the disease.
Can chronic pain be managed without surgery?
Yes. Pain management may include non-interventional treatments, physiotherapy, rehabilitation, and other approaches based on the cause and severity of the pain.
When should someone seek specialist help for chronic pain?
Specialist care may be helpful when pain continues for a long time, affects daily activities, or is difficult to manage with usual treatment.
Can nuclear medicine help assess cancer treatment response?
Yes. PET-CT can be used in appropriate cases to assess response to chemotherapy or radiation therapy and to evaluate for disease recurrence or progression.
Does nuclear medicine involve radiation?
Yes. Nuclear medicine uses radioactive tracers, and the amount administered varies according to the specific diagnostic or therapeutic procedure.
Is PET-CT available for children?
Nuclear medicine services are available for children, with the radiation dose considered as part of the individual imaging procedure.
What is PET-CT used for?
PET-CT can help assess certain cancers, evaluate treatment response, detect recurrence or progression, and support the evaluation of some neurological, cardiac, and infectious conditions.
When might a nuclear medicine scan be recommended?
Nuclear medicine imaging may be recommended when functional information about organs, tissues, or disease activity is needed for diagnosis or treatment planning.
