Palliative radiotherapy for pediatric patients: Parental perceptions of indication, intent, and outcomes.

Improved quality of life with pRT sometimes blurs the distinction between palliation and cure. We found that most parents understand the aim to improve quality of life, although a proportion of parents perceived pRT as a cure to their child's disease. Despite this, the majority of parents reported that the outcome of the pRT course exceeded their expectations. We postulate that parents derive comfort from pursuing active treatment.