
"I was delighted to take part in a clinical trial as it has the potential to really help others in the future.”
This study compared different types of pain relief for people with advanced cancer in the abdomen. This trial recruited people who had cancer that started in the or people whose cancer had spread to the liver from elsewhere in the body.
Advanced cancer in the abdomen can cause pain. There are many different causes and types of pain. Doctors often use morphine or similar drugs (opioid based painkillers) but sometimes they don’t work very well.
Doctors know that they can reduce or even get rid of pain if they carry out a nerve block. This means that they cut or block the nerve that is carrying the pain signals. People could then need fewer painkillers, or maybe none at all.
This trial looked at 2 different methods of stopping nerves working, and compared them with having opioid painkillers. The aim of this trial was to see how well nerve blocks work to relieve pain.
This small trial showed that the 2 different methods of stopping nerves working did not help to control pain. They were no better than opioid painkillers alone.
65 people took part in the trial
The people who took part filled in a diary rating their pain level every day. And the trial team interviewed each person about their pain after 2 weeks, 1 month, and then monthly after that.
2 months after treatment started the researchers looked at the number of pain free days that people had. They compared the 3 different treatments to see how well they worked. They found no difference between the 3 groups in how well pain was controlled. Or in the number of people who rated their pain relief as ‘good’. This meant the patient described their worst pain in the last week as mild.
We have based this summary on information from the team who ran the trial. The information they sent us has been reviewed by independent specialists () and published in a medical journal. The figures we quote above were provided by the trial team. We have not analysed the data ourselves.
Please note: In order to join a trial you will need to discuss it with your doctor, unless otherwise specified.
Mr Colin Johnson
Department of Health
NIHR Clinical Research Network: Cancer
Freephone 0808 800 4040
"I was delighted to take part in a clinical trial as it has the potential to really help others in the future.”