Cancer patients compromise about 15-20 % of all patients on the intensive Care Unit (ICU). Moreover, recent therapeutic developments in hematology oncology as chimeric T-cells (CAR T-cells) regularly require critical care and therefore the amount of cancer patients in the ICU is expected to grow in the coming years. Although their prognosis has dramatically improved over the past decades, the mortality on cancer patients on the ICU is still high compared to non-cancer patients. Therefore, the interdisciplinary management of these patients is crucial in order to accurately identify patients who benefit from transfer to the ICU and to optimize treatment of these vulnerable and often complex patients. Consequently, large cohort studies have shown a positive impact of daily interdisciplinary patient visits including hematology-oncology and critical care medicine on survival of cancer patients on the ICU. This short review summarizes current knowledge and open questions in the critical care management of cancer patients.
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