Palliative surgery for cancer pain

This article from the Western Journal of Medicine discusses palliative surgery as a way to manage pain in cancer patients.  It puts the role of palliative surgery in perspective; acknowledging its ability to relieve pain in certain situations when less invasive pain management alternatives have been explored.  It also takes into consideration issues such as the potential success and mortality of the procedure in regards to the condition of the patient.  These issues are discussed with the goal of palliative treatment being to increase the quality of a patient's life and not just survival.