{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,5,29]],"date-time":"2026-05-29T11:31:17Z","timestamp":1780054277230,"version":"3.54.0"},"reference-count":19,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"2","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,30]],"date-time":"2026-01-30T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1769731200000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"funder":[{"name":"Fundaci\u00f3n Gonzalo Rio Arronte"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["Children"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Background\/Objectives: Pediatric palliative care seeks to relieve suffering and improve the quality of life of children with severe conditions and their families. This prospective cohort study assessed changes in quality of life following enrollment in a pediatric palliative care program at a tertiary care center in Mexico and explored factors associated with these changes. Methods: Children with life-limiting or severe disabling conditions were followed at baseline, 3 months, and 6 months. Quality of life was measured using the Pediatric Quality of Life Inventory (PedsQL\u2122) Cancer Module for oncologic patients and the PedsQL\u2122 Family Impact Module for all families. Results: A total of 166 families completed the Family Impact Module questionnaires, and 116 oncologic patients completed the Cancer Module. Mean children\u2019s PedsQL Cancer Module scores improved from 58.9 to 77.9, and family scores improved from 60.1 to 78.8 over six months (both p &lt; 0.001). Families of oncologic patients and those residing outside the Mexico City metropolitan area had lower baseline scores (adjusted differences \u22129.84, 95% CI: \u221215.9 to \u22123.77; and \u22126.9, 95% CI: \u221212.38 to \u22121.44, respectively); however, the latter group showed a greater rate of improvement over time, contrary to our initial hypothesis\u2014survival varied by diagnosis, with longer survival observed in children with neurologic or intracranial conditions. Conclusions: The quality of life of families and pediatric oncologic patients showed improvement over time following enrollment in a specialist pediatric palliative care program in a middle-income setting. Equitable access should be ensured for families affected by chronic conditions, particularly those living beyond major urban areas.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/children13020196","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,30]],"date-time":"2026-01-30T11:09:22Z","timestamp":1769771362000},"page":"196","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Improved Quality of Life in Children and Families Following Enrollment in a Pediatric Palliative Care Program: A Prospective Cohort Study"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"13","author":[{"given":"J\u00e9ssica H.","family":"Guadarrama-Orozco","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Hospital Infantil de M\u00e9xico Federico G\u00f3mez, Palliative Care Service, Dr. M\u00e1rquez, 162, Doctores, Mexico City 06720, Mexico"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Mar\u00eda G.","family":"Mendoza-Mart\u00ednez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Hospital Infantil de M\u00e9xico Federico G\u00f3mez, Palliative Care Service, Dr. M\u00e1rquez, 162, Doctores, Mexico City 06720, Mexico"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Sergio E.","family":"Bautista-T\u00e9llez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Aut\u00f3noma de M\u00e9xico, Escolar 411, Copilco Universidad, Mexico City 04510, Mexico"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-2323-1771","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Paola","family":"Ya\u00f1ez-Maldonado","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Facultad de Medicina, Universidad Nacional Aut\u00f3noma de M\u00e9xico, Escolar 411, Copilco Universidad, Mexico City 04510, Mexico"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Karina Mendoza-de la","family":"Mendoza-de-la-Vega","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Hospital Infantil de M\u00e9xico Federico G\u00f3mez, Palliative Care Service, Dr. M\u00e1rquez, 162, Doctores, Mexico City 06720, Mexico"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-3776-0105","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Mar\u00eda F.","family":"Castilla-Peon","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Hospital Psiqui\u00e1trico Infantil Dr. Juan N. Navarro, Comisi\u00f3n Nacional de Salud Mental y Adicciones, San Buenaventura 86, Belisario Dom\u00ednguez, Mexico City 01480, Mexico"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,1,30]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"13","DOI":"10.2174\/1573396312666161230145417","article-title":"Improving Cancer Care for Children in the Developing World: Challenges and Strategies","volume":"13","year":"2017","journal-title":"Curr. Pediatr. Rev."},{"key":"ref_2","doi-asserted-by":"crossref","first-page":"e422","DOI":"10.1016\/S2214-109X(24)00476-5","article-title":"The Evolution of Serious Health-Related Suffering from 1990 to 2021: An Update to The Lancet Commission on Global Access to Palliative Care and Pain Relief","volume":"13","author":"Knaul","year":"2025","journal-title":"Lancet Glob. 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