[Chronic critically ill patients from the perspective of hematologists/oncologists]

Many factors contribute to making critically ill patients with underlying hematological or oncological diseases into a special collective on intensive care units, such as an often incurable or at least doubtfully curable underlying disease, therapy associated complications and a commonly present immunosuppression. The prognosis of these patients has clearly improved in recent years so that a general reluctance in deciding to treat these patients in intensive care units can no longer be justified. Comprehensive infection diagnostics and a guideline oriented causal and supportive treatment can improve the prognosis of sepsis even in hematology/oncology patients. In the therapy of respiratory failure non-invasive ventilation is of great importance for a reduction in mortality if used early and contraindications, such as termination criteria are considered. Considerations on long-term prognosis, quality of life and palliative care are increasingly becoming topics in intensive care medicine.