The significance of cancer pain in pancreatic cancer

Abstract

15590 Background: Pancreatic cancer patients often have cancer pains. Although the therapeutic plans for pancreatic cancer are mainly based on imaging studies (CT, MRI, US, and ERCP) and performance status (PS), the presence of tumor cancer is usually not considered. In this study, we analyzed the significance of cancer pain in pancreatic cancer. Methods: The subjects were pancreatic cancer patients (UICC stage II - IV) who received medical treatments between Mar 2001 and Feb 2007 in our hospital. We divided these patients into two groups (no cancer pain, cancer pain (taking opioids or NSAIDs). We compared the presence of cancer pain with the overall survival by UICC stages and treatments using the log-rank test. Results: We examined 217 patients (stage II: 41, stage III: 47, stage IV: 129). The treatments were operation (44), chemotherapy (159), or supportive care (14). The status of cancer pain before treatment was as follows (nothing: 114, opioids: 75, NSAIDs: 24). Concerning UICC stages, the cancer pain group had significantly poor prognosis only at stage IV (p=0.001). Concerning treatments, the patients who received chemotherapy (p=0.002) or operation (p=0.04) in the cancer pain group had poor prognosis. Conclusions: The presence of cancer pain may correlate with the prognosis of pancreatic cancer. Especially on determining the indication of operation, we should consider the presence of cancer pain besides the imaging studies and PS. No significant financial relationships to disclose.