Patients with head and neck cancer may need more intensive pain management to maintain daily functioning: a multi-center study.

Abstract

The purpose of this study is to investigate the prevalence of pain, pain management, and impact of recent pain on daily functioning in patients with head and neck cancer (HNC) and patients with other cancers. This multi-center survey was conducted by using Brief Pain Inventory questionnaire to evaluate pain status and its impact on daily functioning. A total of 3289 patients were analyzed including 708 HNC patients and 2581 patients with other cancers. The overall pain prevalence was 69.17%. A higher percentage of HNC patients had recent pain (60.59 vs. 44.01%, P < 0.001), required pain management (86.29 vs. 72.03%, P < 0.001), and used any analgesics (53.81 vs. 34.52%, P < 0.001). HNC patients with pain management had a higher prevalence of recent pain (85.83 vs. 81.14%, P = 0.044) and a slightly lower satisfaction rate (74.00 vs. 79.70%, P = 0.070). Regarding the impact of pain on daily functioning, HNC patients had a lower mean interference score for general activity such as walking, normal work, sleep, and life enjoyment. The HNC patients may need more intensive pain management to achieve optimal pain control and maintain daily functioning.