Abstract
Opioids are essential medications in relieving pain, particularly in cancer pain. According to the World Health Organization, 55% of patients with cancer undergoing active anticancer therapies and 66% of the patients with advanced, metastatic cancer do experience pain. Opioids are prescribed for relieving pain to a level that allows for an acceptable quality of life; however, the same opioids have many side effects that can potentially limit their use, with pruritus being one of them. Opioid-induced pruritus can be localized or generalized, and the literature shows that its spread and intensity are dependent on individual sensitivity, but mostly on the type, the dose and the route of administration of the used opioids. Various mechanisms of action and treatment options, described in this review article, were proposed for opioid-induced pruritus.
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