Kathleen M. Foley, MD, an Attending Neurologist in the Pain & Palliative Care Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, discusses the history and future direction of pain management for patients with cancer.

Cancer-related pain management has progressed substantially in the last 30 years, but significant barriers still exist. Studies suggest that nearly 50% of patients with cancer in the United States are not receiving adequate treatment for their pain, despite previous studies by the World Health Organization suggesting that 90% could be treated effectively.

Foley notes that a mismatch exists between those being treated adequately and the multiple resources, drugs, and trained specialists that are available. As research continues to progress, some of the barriers that are preventing effective cancer pain management are beginning to be better understood.

In the future, the focus will continue to be on the many patient and healthcare system related barriers that exist, in order to ensure that more patients are treated adequately. The goal at this point is to bring the number of those treated effectively up to 90%.

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Kathleen M. Foley, MD, from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, on the history and future goals for cancer pain management.

Dr. Kathleen Foley on the Goal for Cancer Pain Management

Kathleen M. Foley, MD, an Attending Neurologist in the Pain & Palliative Care Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, discusses a program created by the World Health Organization (WHO) that addresses palliative care policies for patients with cancer.

Foley notes the ability to prevent disease, detect disease early, treat those who are treatable, and provide palliative care are essential for any program. These four items summarize the WHO's policy on palliative care and are incorporated into many documents that stress the importance of palliative care not just for cancer patients but also for all patients.

Around the world, there has been an extraordinary development of palliative care programs. However, approximately less than 20% of the population that might benefit from palliative care services actually received care. Internationally, the greatest challenges are in medium and lower income countries where there is a lack of training and resources to provide the needed palliative care.

Dr. Kathleen Foley, from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Addresses the Importance of Palliative Care

Dr. Foley Addresses the Importance of Palliative Care

Kathleen M. Foley, MD, an Attending Neurologist in the Pain & Palliative Care Service at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, believes that one of the most important advances in the quality of care provided to patients with cancer pain were the guidelines developed by the World Health Organization (WHO) in the 1980s.

Foley notes that these guidelines made an enormous difference in the way that cancer pain was managed, throughout the world. In general, the guidelines dealt with the use of pharmacologic agents, as the mainstay approach.

However, as time progressed, it became clear that managing pain in cancer patients didn’t just involve pharmaceuticals. This type of pain is more complex, Foley explains, and requires a larger team of individuals working together to improve pain for patients with cancer.

View more from the 2012 MASCC International Symposium

Dr. Kathleen Foley, from Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, Discusses the World Health Organization Guidelines for Cancer Pain Management.

Kathleen M. Foley, MD

Articles

Dr. Kathleen Foley on the Goal for Cancer Pain Management

Dr. Foley Addresses the Importance of Palliative Care

Dr. Foley Discusses Guidelines for Cancer Pain Management