Understanding and Managing Cancer Pain

Cancer comes with many unimaginable problems and complications, and for those who have cancer, living with cancer pain can be a huge problem. In case you wish to Keen about or seek treatment for cancer pain in Dwarka or Delhi, read this article to find out the views of some of the best oncologists in Dwarka, who are writing to help you. Learn what causes cancer pain, how it

can be treated, and what obstacles could stand in the way of getting sufficient cancer pain relief.

Not everyone who has cancer will have cancer pain, but some do. In case you have a cancer that has spread or recurred, your chances of experiencing pain are higher.

Cancer pain takes on many forms, for example it can be a dull, achy, sharp or burning pain. It could be constant, intermittent, mild, moderate or very severe. The level of pain people feel depends on some factors like the kind of cancer a person has, how far advanced it is, where it's located and the tolerance to pain.

The good news is cancer pain is manageable, and controlling the pain is an integral part of treatment.

Causes of cancer pain 

Cancer pain can be caused by the cancer itself and could also happen if the cancer were to grow into or destroy tissue close by. As tumours grow, they can press against nerves, bones or organs which causes pain. They also release chemicals that cause pain. Treating the cancer itself can help the pain in these situations. However, cancer treatments themselves: surgery, radiation and chemotherapy, can also cause pain.

Treating cancer pain

A number of treatments are available for treating cancer pain, the options depend on the cause of your cancer pain and the intensity behind it. You could need a combination of pain treatments to find maximum relief.

Your Options include:

• Over-the-counter pain relief medicine. This is for mild to moderate level of pain, where pain relievers that don't mandate a prescription can help. These include aspirin, acetaminophen (Tylenol, others) and ibuprofen (Advil, Motrin IB, others).
  
  
• Medications derived from opium (opioids). Opioids are prescribed medications that treat moderate to severe pain. Some examples of opioids are morphine and oxycodone.
  There is a flip side to short term opioids, pain relief comes fairly quickly but you need to take them more often and this builds addictive tendencies. Other opioid drugs are long-term medicines, so pain relief will take longer but the medicine won’t be taken regularly. At times both short and long term opioids are used together.
  
  
• Other prescription medicine. Other medicine can help alleviate the pain, including antidepressants, anti-seizure drugs and steroids.
  
  
• Nerve Block procedure for cancer pain.

  Interventional Cancer Pain Management:

  1. Peripheral Nerve/Plexus block e.g. Cochlea plexus block

  2. Central

  a) Peripheral nerve carrying sensation id irreversibly destroyed for permanent pain relief by agents like alcohol, phenol etc. and Radio frequency ablation.

  b) Central block is performed by blocking nerve at spinal depending upon area of pain.

  Interventional cancer pain management is a very important component of cancer pain management services, particularly when non – invasive pharm therapy (medicine) fails to give adequate pain relief.

  • Integrative therapy. Some people have found pain relief from acupuncture, massage, physical therapy, relaxation exercises, meditation and hypnosis.

All pain medicines have side effects and block are occasionally unpredictable. Work with doctors to better understand and appreciate the benefits and risks of pain treatment and managing side effects

Why do people not receive the required treatment for cancer pain?

For a number of reasons, cancer pain is still not talked about or understood enough. These reasons could include:

• Ignorance of doctors on cancer pain and treatment. Responsible and well-trained healthcare professionals should ask patients with cancer about their pain upon every visit. Some doctors unfortunately just don't know enough about pain treatment. In that case, change your doctor or request a referral for a palliative care or cancer pain specialist in Delhi.
  
  Some doctors ponder over concerns regarding opioid use and addiction, and could be reluctant to prescribe them. Having a close working relationship with your cancer specialist is integral to the proper use of these medications.
• Reluctance of people to complain about their pain. Some people don’t like to want bother or trouble their doctors, or they are afraid the pain could mean the cancer is getting worse. Please don’t adhere to this line of thinking, we are here only for and because of the needs of every patient, no matter how trivial or serious the patients think their problems are.
• Fear of getting addicted to opioids. The risk of addiction in people who have advanced cancer who are on pain medication as required for cancer pain is low.

You could develop a tolerance towards your pain medication, which means you basically need a higher dose to control the pain. Tolerating pain is not addiction. If your prescription medication isn't working quite as well as it did, talk to your doctor about a higher dose another drug. Don't increase the dose on your own.

• Fear of side effects. Some people fear they’ll be constantly sleepy, unable to communicate, act strange or be seen as dependent on medications. You could have these side effects when you begin strong pain medication, but they go away once the doctors find the suitable level of pain medications for you and once you yourself have a steady level of pain medicine in your body.

Get the best treatment for cancer pain in Dwarka with our expert oncologists, call us and book an appointment now.