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Patients with advanced hematological malignancies may experience many troublesome hemorrhagic complications requiring hospitalisation during a palliative home care (HC) program. We report on the feasibility of the management of bleeding at home in patients with haematological malignancies admitted in a domiciliary HC program. The occurrence of a major hemorrhage episode (>1 WHO grade) was registered among 469 patients with hematological malignancies in the terminal phase of their disease followed at home. Number, sites, domiciliary treatment (local hemostatic measures, platelet units, hemostatic drugs, packed red blood cells) and outcome of hemorrhagic complications were evaluated. Out of 469 patients, 123 (26%) experienced a bleeding complication; the overall number of hemorrhagic episodes was 232 (49%) with a median number of 2 episodes per patient. Patients with a platelet count lower than 20 x 10(9)/L (P < 0.00005) or with a diagnosis of acute leukemia or in blast crisis of myeloprolypherative disorders (P < 0.00005) showed a significant higher incidence of hemorrhages than other patients. Resolution of bleeding at home was obtained in 206 (88%) of the 232 episodes; platelet units were transfused at home in 188 (81%) cases. Bleeding was the cause of hospitalisation in four cases. Death occurred in 447 of 469 patients: in 26 of them (6%), it was caused by bleeding complications (11 brain hemorrhage, 2 hematemesis, 3 hemoptysis and 10 melena). In this group of patients, bleeding was a relevant clinical problem However, by implementing a domiciliary palliative care program, home management of hemorrhages proved to be a safe and effective choice.

We report on epidemiology, features, outcome, and domiciliary management of pain in patients with advanced hematological malignancies followed by an experienced hospital-based home care (HC) team. Out of 469 patients, 244 (52%) experienced a total of 284 pain syndromes. Pain intensity was rated from mild to moderate in 31% and from moderate to severe in 69% of them. The diagnosed pain mechanisms were deep somatic in 56%, superficial somatic in 15%, visceral 14%, mixed 8%, and neuropathic in 7% of pain syndromes, respectively. Incident pain was observed in 38% of all pain syndromes. In every diagnostic group, deep somatic pain was prevalent. Moreover, 85% of visceral pain syndromes were observed in patients affected by non-Hodgkin's lymphoma (NHL). In addition, out of 284 pain syndromes, 150 (51%) were caused by bone involvement. The most frequent recognized pain provocative mechanisms were bone marrow expansions, osteolysis, lymph node enlargement, and mucositis. In our experience, an approach based on the association of causal therapies and analgesics allows optimal control of most pain syndromes. Therefore, pain is a major problem in patients affected by advanced hematological malignancies, and its management can be effective and feasible when carried out by a skilled HC team.