A Narrative Review of Early Palliative Care in Advanced Malignancy: Evidence, Challenges and Paths Ahead

Early palliative care (EPC) has been shown to improve the quality of life of patients with advanced malignancies, although its role within the context of newer cancer therapeutics requires further research. Despite endorsement by national and international guidelines, EPC remains an aspirational ideal rather than a routine practice. Implementation is hindered by limited resources, clinician hesitancy to refer and patient- and family-related factors. To translate evidence into practice, future initiatives must focus on service innovations that operate within existing constraints. Stepped models, patient-reported outcome measures, telehealth, and machine learning represent promising approaches to achieving this goal. This review summarises the evidence surrounding EPC, outlines key barriers to its delivery and examines emerging strategies to improve its integration into oncological care.