Background: Cancer in children is a potentially curable disease, particularly in developed countries. Conventional chemotherapy is essentially an integral part of treatment, either alone, or as a part of multimodality therapy including... more
Background: Cancer in children is a potentially curable disease, particularly in developed countries. Conventional chemotherapy is essentially an integral part of treatment, either alone, or as a part of multimodality therapy including surgery & radiotherapy. How to deal with pain is an integral part of symptom management in pediatric cancer patients in general, with especially great importance in the context of palliative care in developing countries, in which curability lags behind that of developed countries. Proper recognition of underlying pathophysiology and various causes of pain are so essential for pain management, and for ameliorating suffering in the realm of holistic care for children with cancer. The aim of this study is to address and meticulously analyze the spectrum of pain characteristics in children with cancer at an institutional university cancer center to unravel pain profile in these patients as an experience for a developing country.
Although there is an increased awareness of and treatment of acute pain in infants and children, the lack of awareness on various chronic and persistent pains in children often leads to physicians/pediatricians pursuing an endless search... more
Although there is an increased awareness of and treatment of acute pain in infants and children, the lack of awareness on various chronic and persistent pains in children often leads to physicians/pediatricians pursuing an endless search for the underlying etiology of the discomfort. Continued lab investigations are undertaken for the sake of “completeness” to search for a biological explanation for the pain. The author would like to present this case report where there was no obvious cause for the pain found on investigations. The child was treated for neuropathic pain with complete recovery. Though complex regional pain syndrome (CRPS) was suspected, the diffi culty in establishing a diagnosis, convincing caregivers and compliance to pharmacotherapy are the major challenges in the pediatric pain patients.
