• All cancer patients should be screened for pain at each contact

Nociceptive Pain

• Caused by ongoing tissue damage to somatic &/or visceral structures that results in the activation of nociceptors found in the skin, viscera, muscle & connective tissues
• Can be subclassified as:
  • Somatic pain that often occur after surgical procedures or from bone metastasis
    • The pain is described as sharp, aching, stabbing, well localized, throbbing & pressure-like
  • Visceral pain is caused by tumor involvement of organ causing pain, may also be due to compression, infiltration or distension of abdominal or thoracic viscera
    • The pain is described as more diffuse & difficult to localize; gnawning or cramping if secondary to obstruction of hollow viscus; aching, sharp or throbbing when due to tumor involvement of organ capsule

Neuropathic Pain

• Sustained from peripheral or central nervous system damage or dysfunction
• Pain described as burning, pricking, electric-like, stabbing, sharp or shooting & sometimes may have a deep aching component
• Pain is usually located in the area innervated by the compressed/damaged peripheral nerve, plexus, nerve root or spinal cord that is often associated with loss of sensation in the painful region
• Allodynia or dysesthesia may be present
• Please see the disease management chart Neuropathic Pain for more information

Breakthrough Pain

• Pain that occurs even when pain is adequately treated or even in a relatively well controlled baseline pain
  • It has rapid onset, moderate to severe in intensity & relatively short in duration (median 30 minutes)

Incident Pain

• Pain that occurs after a specific activity or event
• Rescue doses of short-acting opioids are given in anticipation of those events
• Rescue doses is usually between 1/12 & 1/6 of the total 24-hours dose

End-of-Dose Failure Pain

• Pain that occurs toward the end of dosing interval for regularly scheduled opioid
• Regularly scheduled opioid dose or frequency are increased to manage this type of pain

Uncontrolled Persistent Pain

• Pain that occurs due to inadequate management of existing regularly scheduled opioid
• Dose schedule adjustment are done to manage this kind of pain

• In order to manage cancer pain effectively, comprehensive assessment of pain is a necessary first step
• It is important that the intensity of pain be quantified & qualitatively described by the patient itself whenever possible
• Aside from using pain rating scale, pain assessment includes:
  • Location, referral pattern, & radiation of pain 
  • Quality of pain
  • Presence of breakthrough pain
  • Current & prior non-pharmacologic & pharmacologic treatments used & their impact on pain
  • Adequate comfort, satisfaction with pain relief
  • Provider assessment of adequacy of function
  • Any special issues for the patient relevant to pain treatment

• Behaviors & discomfort (ie facial expression, body movements, verbalization or vocalizations, changes in interpersonal interactions, changes in routine activity) can also be a way of assessing presence of pain
• Pain assessment aims to determine:
  • Nature & pathophysiology of pain
  • Pain severity
  • Impact of pain on functions & quality of life
  • Response to interventions

• Numerical levels of pain intensity or pain scores are:
  • 1-3 is mild
  • 4-6 is moderate
  • 7-10 is severe

Pain Assessment Tools

• Used in assessing the intensity of pain & the effectiveness of management

Unidimensional Assessment Tools

• Reliable, easily implemented (with minimal training) & sustained in outpatient practice
• Numerical rating scale may be done by verbally asking the patient to describe the pain from 0-10 with 10 as the worst pain or by asking the patient to write or encircle the number that describes the intensity of pain experience
• Categorical scale can be done by asking the patient to give a word or words that describes the pain experience
• Visual Analogue/Pictorial/Faces pain rating scale is done by assessing the facial reaction of the patient to pain

Multidimensional Assessment Tools

• Reliable, but needs more evidence in regards to validity
• Brief Pain Inventory (BPI) is the most frequently used
  • Assess the severity of pain by its intensity & how it affects the patient’s life
  • Quantifies these measures using a 0 to 10 numerical scale

• EORTC QLQ-C30 Pain Scale, SF-36 Bodily Pain Scale & the Short Form McGill Pain Questionnaire are other multidimensional scales used

Psychosocial Assessment

• Psychosocial distress assessment should be done as pain is an important stressor in all kinds of cancers that can cause psychological distress & disability
• Inadequately controlled pain may cause substantial psychological distress
• Validated tools should be used in screening for psychological distress
  
  

• It is essential to have a good history taking for accurate assessment & diagnosis of causes of pain
• History should consists of:
  • Characteristics of pain: location, intensity, frequency
  • Cancer history: type & staging of carcinoma, chemotherapeutic regimen & duration
  • Medication: prior treatments received for pain, maintenance treatments
  • Co-morbidities
  • Psychosocial status

• Confirms the clinical diagnosis formed after comprehensive history taking
• Gives information on the patient’s condition & extent of problems
• Neurological exam should be done in patients with suspected neuropathic pain