Is There a Gender Difference in Painful Bone Metastases?

Abstract

AbstractPurpose. To examine if there were any gender differences in bone pain and its functional interference among patients referred for palliative radiotherapy. To investigate any gender differences in analgesic consumption and the response to radiation treatmen.Methods and Materials. Patients with bone metastases treated with palliative radiotherapy were interviewed using the Brief Pain Inventory at baseline, 1, 2, and 3 months following the radiation treatment. Patients were asked to rate on a scale of 0-10 their worst, average and current pain as well as how pain interfered with the following: general activity, mood, walking ability, normal work, relations with other people, sleep and enjoyment of life. Analgesic consumption in the previous 24 hours and other patient demographics were recorded too. Independent non-parametric Wilcoxon tests were used to evaluate for gender differences in quantitative variables. P value < 0.01 was considered statistically significant.Results. Between May 2003 and April...