About one-third of the cancer patients in the U.S. suffer from significant pain. Pain can affect a patient in many ways. It can cause a reduction in activity, prevent sleep, and inhibit eating. Pain can also make a patient feel afraid and depressed. Tuesday, a new resource was made available to help cancer patients work more effectively with their doctors to make informed decisions about their available pain treatment options.
Patients have a right to appropriate pain assessment and management.
This information will facilitate the process of informed decision-making by patients in collaboration with physicians and help assure that patients achieve the best possible pain relief, said Michael Weitzner, Chief of Palliative Care at Moffitt Cancer Center. Often this pain can be substantially reduced or eliminated and patients can be made more comfortable during their battles with cancer, he added. Misperceptions about the likelihood of drug addiction and abuse among cancer patients have resulted in avoidance of appropriate pain control by some patients. Reactions to recent disturbing media coverage of drug addicts and painkiller abuse may ironically interfere with important efforts to appropriately manage cancer patients pain, said Weitzner . In fact, when pain medicines are given and taken appropriately, patients rarely become addicted to them.