Prevalence and Management of Cancer Pain in Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen, Thailand
Patravoot Vatanasapt MD, MS*, Sunee Lertsinudom BSc, BCP***, Aumkhae Sookprasert MD**, Anakapong Phunmanee MD**, Nutjaree Pratheepawanit PhD***, Sirintip Wattanaudomrot Bpharm****, Ubol Juangpanich BSc, MSN****, Tatiya Treapkhuntong BSc****
Affiliation : * Department of Otolaryngology, Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen ** Department of Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen *** Department of Clinical Pharmacy, Faculty of Pharmacy, Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen **** Srinagarind Hospital, Khon Kaen University, Khon Kaen
Objective : Cancer pain remains an invisible problem in cancer care and our study aimed to document its
prevalence, characteristics, and patterns of management at a tertiary care teaching hospital.
Study design: Descriptive, prospective, cohort study.
Material and Method: We recruited 335 consecutive adult patients diagnosed with cancers, admitted to
Srinagarind Hospital, between February and April 2004. All of the participants were interviewed, and their
pain evaluated by direct assessment using a numeric rating scale.
Results : The overall prevalence of cancer pain prior to admission was 56.5%, and within the first 24 hours of
admission 41.5%. Three-quarters (74%) of patients with pain reported improvement; however, one-third of
those with pain never received any pain control intervention. Moreover, about half of those with persistent
pain only received treatment by requesting it and then only received simple analgesics.
Conclusion : Cancer pain remains under-detected and under-treated in many patients. Pain monitoring on a
regular basis as well as a training program on pain management should be considered as first-line tools for
improving pain control among cancer patients.
Keywords : Cancer, Pain, Prevalence, Management
