When looking at cancer treatment and care, quality of life means looking at the whole of your life, and how your disease and any treatments are affecting it. So if doctors want to know about how a treatment affects your quality of life, they will look at how serious the side effects of the treatment are, and how difficult it is to have the treatment. For example, can you have the treatment at home, or do you have to go into hospital? If you have incurable cancer, the effects of a treatment on your quality of life may outweigh any benefit you would get from that treatment. Doctors need to consider this when deciding on your treatment plan.