"There is significant disparity in pain treatment adequacy, with the odds of undertreatment twice as high for minority patients."

http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pubmed/22508819

J Clin Oncol. 2012 Apr 16. [Epub ahead of print]

Prospective, Observational Study of Pain and Analgesic Prescribing in Medical Oncology Outpatients With Breast, Colorectal, Lung, or Prostate Cancer.

Fisch MJ, Lee JW, Weiss M, Wagner LI, Chang VT, Cella D, Manola JB, Minasian LM, McCaskill-Stevens W, Mendoza TR, Cleeland CS.

Source

Michael J. Fisch, Tito R. Mendoza, and Charles S. Cleeland, The University of Texas MD Anderson Cancer Center, Houston, TX; Ju-Whei Lee and Judith B. Manola, Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, Boston, MA; Matthias Weiss, Marshfield Clinic, Marshfield, WI; Lynne I. Wagner and David Cella, Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine, Chicago, IL; Victor T. Chang, Department of Veterans Affairs, New Jersey Health Care System, East Orange, and University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey, Newark, NJ; and Lori M. Minasian and Worta McCaskill-Stevens, National Cancer Institute, Bethesda, MD.

Abstract

PURPOSE

Pain is prevalent among patients with cancer, yet pain management patterns in outpatient oncology are poorly understood. 

PATIENTS AND METHODS

A total of 3,123 ambulatory patients with invasive cancer of the breast, prostate, colon/rectum, or lung were enrolled onto this prospective study regardless of phase of care or stage of disease. At initial assessment and 4 to 5 weeks later, patients completed a 25-item measure of pain, functional interference, and other symptoms. Providers recorded analgesic prescribing. The pain management index was calculated to assess treatment adequacy.

RESULTS

Of the 3,023 patients we identified to be at risk for pain, 2,026 (67%) reported having pain or requiring analgesics at initial assessment; of these 2,026 patients, 670 (33%) were receiving inadequate analgesic prescribing. We found no difference in treatment adequacy between the initial and follow-up visits. Multivariable analysis revealed that the odds of a non-Hispanic white patient having inadequate pain treatment were approximately half those of a minority patient after adjusting for other explanatory variables (odds ratio, 0.51; 95% CI, 0.37 to 0.70; P = .002). Other significant predictors of inadequate pain treatment were having a good performance status, being treated at a minority treatment site, and having nonadvanced disease without concurrent treatment. 

CONCLUSION

Most outpatients with common solid tumors must confront issues related to pain and the use of analgesics. There is significant disparity in pain treatment adequacy, with the odds of undertreatment twice as high for minority patients. These findings persist over 1 month of follow-up, highlighting the complexity of these problems.