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Management of the chronic pain of cancer is a common and difficult problem. In addition to a medical examination of the patient, it is necessary to perform a psychological assessment of his premorbid personality, current mental status, and coping mechanisms to devise an individualized approach to his pain. The mainstay of cancer pain control are the narcotics, which differ primarily in potency and duration of action. Nonnarcotic analgesics are equianalgesic with the less potent narcotics. Antipsychotic drugs are useful as tranquilizers, antiemetics, and analgesic potentiators. Antidepressants and hypnotics permit the patient a more normal life-style. Stimulants such as cocaine and amphetamines both potentiate narcotic analgesia and reduce narcotic-induced somnolence and respiratory depression. Tetrahydrocannabinol offers no advantage over traditional analgesics. With care and patience, the physician can render practically any cancer patient pain-free.
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PMID:Medical management of chronic cancer pain. 3 26

Inadequate nursing education is a major impediment to effective pain relief for cancer patients throughout the world. This study was conducted to identify the level of cancer pain knowledge among baccalaureate student nurses and to determine whether specific activities affect this level of knowledge. Two questionnaires were administered to 82 baccalaureate student nurses in the final course of their program. Although the students displayed a realistic perspective about the severity and prevalence of cancer pain and psychological dependence, specific knowledge deficits and negative attitudes suggest the possibility of inadequate pain management. Specifically, the students believed that (a) maximal analgesic therapy should be delayed until the patient's prognosis was less than 12 months; (b) the proportion of patients whose pain can be controlled by appropriate therapy is less than is possible; (c) increasing pain is related to tolerance rather than to progression of the disease; (d) the preferred route of administration is intravenous rather than oral; and (e) the degree of respiratory depression, rather than constipation, does not decrease with repeated administration. Significant positive correlations (P < or = 0.05) were found between age and cancer pain knowledge and between attendance at seminars/workshops and time spent reading professional journal articles. Of the 30% of the participants who perceived a particular person to be a source for obtaining information about cancer pain management, 52% specified a practicing registered nurse. Seminars and workshops were chosen by 59% of the students as the most effective way for nurses to increase their knowledge.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)
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PMID:Level of cancer pain knowledge among baccalaureate student nurses. 128 10

Cancer pain can be successfully managed with oral or parenteral narcotics in 80% of patients, if those factors that magnify pain perception are also controlled. Pain from any source can be made worse and pain tolerance impaired by depression, regression, intolerance to stress, and/or recurrent withdrawal, all of which require attention and management. Those patients whose cancer pain is still intractable may benefit from a procedure to interrupt pain pathways. Such procedures have become far less common since the introduction of chronic administration of intraspinal narcotics. The subarachnoid route is preferable to the epidural route because it is less likely to result in catheter failure and because much smaller doses can be used, with less systemic effect. In addition, tolerance can be managed more readily by readjustment of dose with the subarachnoid route, and there is no greater incidence of complications. Intraventricular narcotics can be considered in patients whose spinal canal does not allow catheter placement, at approximately 1/10th the spinal dose requirement.
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PMID:Administration of narcotics in cancer pain. 129 25

The safety and efficacy of patient-controlled analgesia for the long-term control of cancer pain was tested prospectively. Respiratory rates, mental status, and pain relief were recorded at baseline and compared with those during the study period. Patients had a lower analgesic demand (i.e., self-administered less morphine during the nighttime); specifically, dosing declined 48% from the daytime level. Respiratory rates did not change appreciably during the study and no cases of significant respiratory depression were encountered. Patients self-administered sufficient morphine to produce adequate but not complete pain relief in almost all trials. Pain relief was safely achieved by both intravenous and subcutaneous routes of administration in both the inpatient and outpatient settings. Mean 24-h morphine use stayed relatively constant even for patients receiving more than 2 weeks of treatment. In conclusion, patient-controlled analgesia is effective and safe therapy for the long-term control of severe cancer pain.
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PMID:Patient-controlled analgesia for cancer pain: a long-term study of inpatient and outpatient use. 139 84

A multicenter study was conducted to determine the patient and physician acceptability of transdermal fentanyl in the management of cancer-related pain. In this study, 10 cancer patients at the University of Iowa received transdermal fentanyl after discontinuing their prior opioid analgesic; 7 patients completed questionnaires before and at 2 and 4 wk following transdermal fentanyl application. There was no significant difference in visual analogue scale scores for pain or mood. Verbal pain descriptor scores improved at 2 wk (P less than .05). There was a nonsignificant tendency toward increased depression and nausea; however, patients spent less time thinking about their illness and felt their cancer was less disruptive to their closest friends/relatives. Constipation, appetite, drowsiness, and concentration were not statistically different. Patients reported improved sleep habits at 2 wk (P less than .05) and tended to require less help with eating, dressing, washing, and using the bathroom. All patients completing the study chose to continue transdermal fentanyl for their cancer pain management. In summary, these data demonstrate the analgesic efficacy of the transdermal fentanyl system and suggest that some patients with cancer-related pain could benefit from its use.
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PMID:Management of cancer pain with transdermal fentanyl: phase IV trial, University of Iowa. 151 36

In contrast to the use of opioids for the treatment of acute and chronic cancer pain, the administration of chronic opioid therapy for pain not due to malignancy remains controversial. We describe 100 patients who were chronically given opioids for treatment of nonmalignant pain. Most patients experienced neuropathic pain or back pain. We used sustained-release dihydrocodeine, buprenorphine, and sustained-release morphine. Pain reduction was measured with visual analogue scales (VAS), and the Karnofsky Performance Status Scale was used to assess the patient's function. Good pain relief was obtained in 51 patients and partial pain relief was reported by 28 patients. Only 21 patients had no beneficial effect from opioid therapy. There was a close correlation between the sum and the peak VAS values (r = 0.983; p less than 0.0001) and pain reduction was associated with an increase in performance (p less than 0.0001). The most common side effects were constipation and nausea. There were no cases of respiratory depression or addiction to opioids. Our results indicate that opioids can be effective in chronic nonmalignant pain, with side effects that are comparable to those that complicate the treatment of cancer pain.
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PMID:Long-term oral opioid therapy in patients with chronic nonmalignant pain. 157 87

The purpose of this double-blind crossover study was to determine whether a sustained-release morphine sulfate (SRMS) tablet given orally every 12 hours could adequately replace immediate-release morphine sulfate solution (IRMS) given orally every 4 hours in hospitalized patients with chronic pain from advanced cancer. Of 33 patients entered, 27 completed the study and were included in the efficacy and safety analysis. Patients were initially randomized to receive either 30-mg SRMS tablets every 12 hours or IRMS at the same mg/24 hours dose, every 4 hours. After 2 days, a crossover was performed, and patients received the alternate treatment for 3 days. Pain and side effects were assessed using a standard 100 mm visual analogue scale (VAS). There were no statistically significant differences between the two treatment groups for mean VAS pain scores or scores for sleepiness, nausea, depression, and anxiety. The incidence of breakthrough pain was similar for both treatment groups, as was the incidence of confusion and constipation. The results demonstrated that SRMS is a safe, effective analgesic preparation for patients who require oral opioids for cancer pain. The data also support the conclusion that sustained-release morphine tablets administered every 12 hours can replace an immediate-release morphine solution administered every 4 hours.
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PMID:A controlled study of sustained-release morphine sulfate tablets in chronic pain from advanced cancer. 159 Feb 84

Studies conducted in recent years have helped define the role of antidepressant drugs in the management of cancer pain. The antinociceptive action of these agents seems to be independent of beneficial effect on depression or mood. Among antidepressant drugs, those of the tricyclic class are preferred when an analgesic effect is sought. Their primary application is for pain due to nerve injury, so-called "neuropathic pain". Although the co-administration of tricyclic antidepressants may increase plasma morphine concentrations, any potentiation of morphine analgesia is thought not to be due to an increased bioavailability of the opiate, but to an intrinsic analgesic effect of antidepressants. On this basis, the use of antidepressants in combination with opioids for the treatment of cancer pain is suitable when a component of deafferentation is present or when there is concomitant depressive illness.
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PMID:Antidepressants in cancer pain. 178 64

Physician education in cancer pain management is seriously deficient. Many problems occur with opioids simply because of therapeutic ignorance. Opioid side effects are best prevented by using morphine as the drug of first choice for severe pain. Anticipation and prevention of opioid side effects avoids most problems. Physicians need to be aware of how to transfer patients from one opioid to another or from one route of administration to another. Side effects common in clinical practice are constipation, nausea/vomiting, dry mouth, and sedation. The importance of the issues of tolerance, dependence, and respiratory depression have been exaggerated.
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PMID:Prevention of opioid side effects. 198 Jan 27

Prescribing practices for patients with cancer pain among populations of doctors in the United Kingdom have been assessed by means of a postal questionnaire. The results indicate that amongst the sample of doctors completing the questionnaire the basic principles of pain control in cancer appear to be understood. Regular oral morphine or diamorphine are most often chosen with the dose being determined mainly by the severity of pain with no arbitrary upper limit. Fears of addiction and respiratory depression, and a relatively long prognosis no longer appear to be major deterrents to the use of strong opioid analgesics. These data indicate considerable shifts in opinion in the doctors responding to the questionnaire and these results and their implications for current and future teaching about the management of cancer pain are discussed.
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PMID:Analgesics in cancer pain: current practice and beliefs. 199 5


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