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Olubukola Ayodele: What doctors write and say has real IMPACT on how patients feel about their lives

Olubukola Ayodele/LinkedIn

Jun 21, 2025, 17:32

Olubukola Ayodele: What doctors write and say has real IMPACT on how patients feel about their lives

Olubukola Ayodele, Consultant Medical Oncologist at the University Hospitals of Leicester NHS Trust, shared a post on LinkedIn:

“If we are serious about delivering truly patient-centred care, then we need to pay more attention to the language we use; in our clinic letters, treatment plans and everyday conversations with patients and their families.

There are terms we’ve long accepted in oncology that carry UNINTENDED weight. For many patients, they don’t just describe care, they define how they feel about their future.

Let’s take the word ‘palliative.’

Whether used in ‘palliative chemotherapy/treatment’ or when referring to palliative care teams, this word often signals end of the road. Patients hear it and feel hopelessness, even when that’s not what we mean.

Yet the reality of metastatic cancer care has changed. Treatments have improved. People are living longer, fuller lives. Many are working, parenting, travelling—all while receiving treatment. So when they see the word ‘palliative’ in a letter or appointment summary, it feels like a contradiction and a threat to their hope.

We owe it to patients to be more mindful.

Some palliative care teams have already recognised this. They’ve rebranded as ‘Supportive Care Teams’ —a simple shift, but one that better reflects the work they do:

Managing side effects

Supporting quality of life

Helping with pain, fatigue, anxiety, and planning—not just at the end, but throughout the cancer journey

Another term that deserves review is ‘clinical trials.’

While standard in medical practice, the word ‘trial’ can carry negative connotations—experimentation, uncertainty, and even suffering. In many African and other global communities, “trial” is associated with hardship or punishment. This can create fear and discourage people from exploring research opportunities.

But when we say ‘clinical research studies’, we frame these as what they truly are: Structured, ethical opportunities to access emerging therapies, often under close monitoring and with potential benefit. This language is clearer and less emotionally charged than “clinical trials”.

This isn’t about softening the truth. It’s about aligning our language with our intentions—to support, inform, and empower.

Let’s be intentional with our words.

Let’s speak HOPE while staying honest.

And let’s always remember that what we write and say has real IMPACT on how patients feel about their lives.

Intentionality doesn’t negate causality.

What other words or terms in oncology or medicine, do you think should be reviewed? Let me know what you think in the comment section.”