Pain control

Pain control is sometimes called "palliative care".  Pain experts are called "palliative care experts."

The best pain control experts are often based in hospices. You might not be referred to a pain expert.  You might have to find a pain control expert at a hospice yourself. You can be treated as an outpatient. 

Some hospitals have specialist palliative care doctors.

Macmillan and District nurses are trained in pain relief.

You can ask to be referred to a palliative care expert, who will be based at a hospital or hospice, or just find an expert yourself, at an early stage of your illness.

Pain control has become more sophisticated during the last few years.   Pain control, or palliative care, is now a specialist area of medical practice.

Pain control drugs can be seen as a ladder.

The ladder starts for mild pain with paracetamol, and non steroidal anti-inflammatory drugs.

It moves on for more serious pain to codeine or dihydrocodeine in combination with paracetamol.

For the most serious pain, stronger drugs such as tramadol or morphine are used, although other drugs are used if morphine gives the patient unacceptable side effects.

Side effects of morphine based drugs include nausea and vomiting, but this can often settle as the body gets used to the treatment over a few days. Other drugs can be given at the same time as morphine to counteract nausea and vomiting. Constipation is a very common effect of morphine, so that laxatives are often given as well. Morphine and similar opiate drugs can cause drowsiness and sometimes confusion.

If the best pain control drugs are not working, ask your specialist or your GP about a procedure called cervical cordotomy, sometimes used to control or remove pain caused by mesothelioma.

Copyright © Anthony Coombs 2006