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Background:    The quality of life (QL) of palliative patients is used to measure the effectiveness of treatment, as well as to show the most important aims in the patient’s care. This study was the comparative estimate of quality of life of the hospitalized terminally ill palliative oncologic patients using the newly developed QLQ-C15-PAL questionnaire.
    Material/Methods:    The study was performed in the Palliative Care Unit in Hospital of Bonifratres Convent in Lodz. A group of the hospitalized terminally ill palliative patients with lung, breast, colon or prostate cancer was analyzed. The research was performed by scored assessment of QL obtained from the questionnaired patients using QLQ-C15-PAL form. Multi-item scales assessing physical and emotional functioning, single items of somatic symptoms and global quality of life estimated subjectively by patient were considered.
    Results:    The overall quality of life was in correlation with type of the diagnosed carcinoma. Poor quality of life was observed especially in patients who had lung cancer considering both aspects: the subjectively estimated quality of life and somatic symptoms. Patients with prostate cancer characterized with better QL scales, relatively. Pain, fatigue, and emotional disturbances, experienced by the majority of patients, have shown to be poor predictors of QL.
    Conclusions:    The above results underline the necessity of continuous improvement of all the activities in palliative care of hospitalized terminally ill palliative patients considering the control of pain as well as emotional functioning. The QLQ –C15-PAL can be used effectively in the palliative care settings.

Keywords: Quality of Life, cancer, Palliative Care