ABSTRACT

Advances in critical care medicine have enabled cancer patients to survive aggressive medical and surgical therapies that they could not have tolerated a decade ago. For patients whose goals can be met by ICU support, the diagnostic and empiric therapeutic approach will be far different than when patients are more stable in other hospital areas: evaluations must be completed rapidly while patients are able to tolerate such testing, and empiric therapy must be broad and promptly administered. Oncologists and infectious disease specialists need to be actively involved in evaluating cancer patients in the ICU and in developing their management plans due to the enhanced knowledge they are likely to have for the patient’s history prior to the ICU, for their knowledge of the underlying disease and life-threatening process, and for their expertise in drug selection and monitoring.