(Does palliative care have a role in treatment of anorexia nervosa?)

A recent report in a palliative care journal described a patient with longstanding and severe anorexia nervosa who was transferred from a psychiatric unit to a hospice, where she died. In this week's Education and Debate section of the BMJ Dr Christopher Williams et al from St James's University Hospital in Leeds argue that patients with anorexia should be actively treated, whereas Dr Lynne Russon and Dr Dawn Alison from the palliative care team at the same hospital put forward the case for palliative care.

Contact:

Dr Christopher Williams, Senior Lecturer, Division of Psychiatry and Behavioural Sciences in Relation to Medicine, Clinical Sciences Building, St James's University Hospital, Leeds

Dr Lynne Russon, Senior Registrar, Palliative Care Team, St James's University Hospital, Ashley Wing, Leeds