Effects of cancer-related pain on quality of life revealed
Mundipharma, a multinational pharmaceutical leader in pain management, will present the abstract of its first and largest cross-sectional evaluation of patients’ perspectives on cancer pain management at the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), Chicago, Illinois, from 29 May to 2 June 2015.
The Mundipharma-sponsored ACHEON[[1]] study poster, summarizing data collected from 1,190 patients across 10 Asian countries[[2]] found a significant impact of cancer pain on a patient’s quality of life, employment and self-reliance, highlighting the need to develop more effective management practices for cancer pain that will require collaborative efforts from institutional, social and regulatory organisations.
- 92 % of patients reported that their pain affected activities of daily living
- 86 % said it affected their sleeping patterns
- 87 % reported impacts to their concentration and focus levels
- 67 % saw an overreliance on other people
Dr. Jin Seok Ahn ( Medical Oncologist, Samsung Medical Center, Seoul, Republic of Korea), said: “Cancer-related pain is complex and debilitating condition that creates a significant socioeconomic burden for patients across Asia. The data from the ACHEON survey confirms the need for collaboration in order to make effective and efficient pain management available in order to help patients enhance their quality of life.”
53 % of respondents attributed their pain from cancer, while 18 % related it back to cancer-related therapy. Unfortunately, 40 % of patients have reported that their pain treatment was inadequate to control their pain on at least one occasion in the past.
Of the 1,059 patients receiving treatments for their cancer pain, only 286 of these patients were receiving opioids. 84 % of patients had never been referred to a pain clinic and only half of the patients had had their pain assessed according to a scale and only 6 % had been treated by pain specialists.
