Multimodal continuous approach to pain management in oncological patients (clinic’s first experience)

Abstract

In current conditions, increased life expectancy led to increased cancer morbidity. Presence of pain syndrome with significant intensity caused development of numerous guidelines on its treatment. Currently, pain management is based on the stepwise multimodal approach of the World Health Organization. In our opinion, wide application of narcotic analgesics is a disadvantage of this method. This pharmaceutical group has a significant number of adverse effects including addiction, development of hyperalgesia, and potential effect of increased rate of cancer recurrence.The study objective is to optimize the stepwise approach by addition of continuous multimodal analgesia. We aim to develop the principles of complex approach to pain management including new combinations of pharmaceuticals of different modalities and new techniques of continuous safe administration using innovative devices.The article presents a prospective description of a series of clinical cases in which new combinations of pharmaceuticals were administered in the context of complex treatment of pain syndrome of significant intensity. Objective evaluation of pain syndrome was performed using the Numeric Rating Scale.Multimodal intravenous pain management using mobile devices administering a mixture of pharmaceuticals in conjunction with basic peroral therapy and widely accepted discrete stepwise approach of the World Health Organization showed first positive results. In our opinion, further studies will allow to 1) decrease the rate of chronic pain syndrome in oncological patients; 2) treat pain syndrome of almost any intensity with preserved quality of life.The first results are encouraging; they show satisfactory effectiveness of the method and its safety. It is necessary to continue studies to develop and standardize the intravenous mixture composition for pain management in the context of the main clinical syndromes determining pain.