Managing cancer and the treatment for it is difficult enough. While not everyone who has cancer experiences episodes of cancer pain, they can add significant burden to the patient's condition. Usually the effect of the cancer itself and an offshoot of the treatment procedure, cancer pain affects one out of every three people undergoing cancer treatment. People who have advanced cancer even have a more difficult time of it since the type of cancer pain they experience are at times too severe that most consider stopping treatment.
Cancer pain can occur in many ways. It may be a dull, throbbing pain or persistently aching and sharp. It could also be constant, intermittent, mild, moderate, or severe. The degrees of intensity and frequency of the pain are attributed to the cause of the cancer pain. There are three primary causes of pain during cancer: tumor pressure, cancer secretion, and cancer treatment.
Sources of Cancer Pain
Tumor Pressure
Cancer pain often results from the cancer itself. By growing into or destroying tissues anywhere near the site of the primary cancer, the tumor puts considerable pressure on bones, nerves, and other organs which can cause severe pain. Cancer pain can also increase and spread especially when metastases (areas affected by cancer other than the primary site) put pressure on the surrounding tissues and organs.
Cancer Secretion
Recent studies show that cancer cells secrete chemicals on the areas surrounding the tumor which can cause pain. These secretions can also amplify pain and make people more susceptible to experiencing these cancer episodes.
Cancer Treatment
Chemotherapy, radiation, surgery, and other forms of cancer treatment are potential sources of cancer pain. Surgery can be painful with an equally painful recovery period. Radiation is known to leave burning sensations or painful scars. Chemotherapy destroys cancer cells but also some healthy sells. As a result, it can have potentially painful side effects like mouth sores, diarrhea, and nerve damage.
There are many ways to treat cancer pain. While the ideal solution is to remove the source of pain through treatment by surgery, chemotherapy, or radiation, there are other ways to provide cancer pain relief if these forms of treatment are not recommended.
Managing Cancer Pain
1.Discuss cancer pain with your doctor. You have to talk to your doctor if you are experiencing cancer pain. This way, your doctor can adjust your treatment or use additional methods to help minimize the pain. He or she can also prescribe pain relief medications for cancer pain.
2.Come up with a pain management program with your doctor. Cancer pain is rarely centered on one area. As such a comprehensive approach is needed for effective pain management. The goal should be to keep the pain at a level with which you are comfortable. You can request for a referral to a major cancer center that is better equipped to manage and treat cancer pain.
3.Take medications. Pain medications like analgesics, weak and strong opioid, and nonsteriodal anti-inflammatory drugs can usually control the pain.
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