MANAGEMENT OF CANCER PAIN

Abstract

Pain is one of the most common symptoms in cancer patients and represents a great negative impact on their quality of life, being a multidimensional problem. About 59% of patients will experience pain regardless of their stage and more than 70% will experience pain in advanced stages of the disease. Multiple are the treatments that exist to manage pain in this type of patients being the opioid therapy considered the Gold standard. The WHO analgesic ladder stipulates that there are three levels of therapy according to the intensity of pain (mild, moderate and severe), however, currently, the interventionist management of pain is being included as an additional therapy regardless of the severity of the pain, even in initial stages of disease. This chapter intends to make an updated review of the management of pain in its different modalities (pharmacological and interventional), to provide an optimal care of the oncological patient and thus improve their quality of life and treatment.