Dame Cicely trained as a nurse, a medical social worker, and finally as a physician.
From 1948 she was involved with the care of patients with terminal illness, lectured widely on the subject, wrote many articles, and contributed to a great number of books.
She founded St. Christopher's Hospice in 1967 as the first research and teaching hospice linked with clinical care, pioneering the field of palliative medicine.
Dame Cicely died on 14 July 2005 at St. Christopher's Hospice.