Impact of dementia on quality of death among cancer patients: An observational study of home palliative care users

Aim The number of cancer patients with dementia has increased markedly in accordance with aging societies. Cancer patients might receive palliative and end‐of‐life care to maintain their quality of life; however, the impact of dementia on the quality of death is unexamined in this population. Consequently, we explored the impact of dementia on the quality of death among cancer patients. Methods Home palliative care staff members completed questionnaires regarding cancer patients’ (n = 508) cognitive status, cancer‐related symptoms and quality of death using the good death inventory. Hierarchical regression analyses were carried out for the entire sample and for stratified groups based on the presence of dementia. Results Of the 508 patients, 156 (30.7%) had dementia. Hierarchical regression analyses revealed that greater quality of death was associated with not having dementia (P