Table 1 outlines common causes and examples of N&V. It should be noted that many patients in this study had more than a single cause for their N&V. Nausea and vomiting in palliative care are commonly experienced symptoms, and the aetiology is often multifactorial. The most common causes are impaired gastric emptying, chemical causes (eg medication) and visceral causes (eg constipation). Close attention should be paid to the clinical features which may suggest the likely cause. Antiemetic therapy should be guided by the likely aetiology, although in practice, the clinical picture is often complex, and so regular reassessment is essential for adequate symptom control. Aetiology In clinical practice, N&V are often multi-factorial symptoms. According to Stephenson et al , the causes in their study were impaired gastric emptying (44%); chemical causes (33%); visceral/serosal pathology (31%); cranial causes (8%) and cortical reasons (7%). 4