Chemotherapy can also be injected via lumbar puncture or into a special reservoir inserted into the ventricles, the normal fluid filled cavities of the brain. Another treatment option may be local radiation therapy that is applied to symptomatic areas. For tumors that are sensitive to chemotherapy, such as lymphoma, systemic chemotherapy may be an alternative to intrathecal therapy. Neurological Complications of Cancer Cancer pain can be managed effectively in most patients with cancer or with a history of cancer. Although cancer pain cannot always be relieved completely, therapy can lessen pain in most patients.
Pain management improves the patient's quality of life throughout all stages of the disease.
Less invasive methods should be used for relieving pain before trying invasive treatment. However, some patients may need this type of therapy. A nerve block is the injection of either a local anesthetic or a drug that inactivates nerves to control otherwise uncontrollable pain. Nerve blocks can be used to determine the source of pain, to treat painful conditions that respond to nerve blocks, to predict how the pain will respond to long-term treatments, and to prevent pain following procedures. Surgery can be performed to implant devices that deliver drugs or electrically stimulate the nerves.