Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain Management

Opioids comprise an important group of drugs used in cancer pain pharmacotherapy. In recent years, more and more studies have emerged indicating the potentially immunosuppressive effects of opioid analgesics and their serious consequences, including the risk of cancer progression. The identification...

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Main Authors: Renata Zajączkowska, Wojciech Leppert, Joanna Mika, Magdalena Kocot-Kępska, Jarosław Woroń, Anna Wrzosek, Jerzy Wordliczek
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: Wiley 2018-01-01
Series:Pain Research and Management
Online Access:http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/9293704
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author Renata Zajączkowska
Wojciech Leppert
Joanna Mika
Magdalena Kocot-Kępska
Jarosław Woroń
Anna Wrzosek
Jerzy Wordliczek
author_facet Renata Zajączkowska
Wojciech Leppert
Joanna Mika
Magdalena Kocot-Kępska
Jarosław Woroń
Anna Wrzosek
Jerzy Wordliczek
author_sort Renata Zajączkowska
collection DOAJ
description Opioids comprise an important group of drugs used in cancer pain pharmacotherapy. In recent years, more and more studies have emerged indicating the potentially immunosuppressive effects of opioid analgesics and their serious consequences, including the risk of cancer progression. The identification of these risks has prompted a search for other effective, and most importantly, safer methods of perioperative analgesic management. Regional analgesia techniques, which allow for a significant reduction in opioid dosing and thus diminish the risk of immunosuppression associated with these drugs, seem to offer substantial hope in this respect. A number of studies available in the literature assess the effects of regional analgesia techniques on cancer progression; however, it is often difficult to interpret their results owing to several perioperative factors (such as surgical trauma, inadequate pain and stress relief, and hypothermia) which are also attributed immunosuppressive effects and tend to be implicated in increased risk of cancer progression. Further research is needed to verify the available data on both the potential adverse effects of opioids and the possible protective effects of regional analgesia techniques on cancer patients.
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institution DOAJ
issn 1203-6765
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language English
publishDate 2018-01-01
publisher Wiley
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series Pain Research and Management
spelling doaj-art-0885aaae21144fd2a1e75bef98049a3d2025-08-20T03:17:04ZengWileyPain Research and Management1203-67651918-15232018-01-01201810.1155/2018/92937049293704Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain ManagementRenata Zajączkowska0Wojciech Leppert1Joanna Mika2Magdalena Kocot-Kępska3Jarosław Woroń4Anna Wrzosek5Jerzy Wordliczek6Department of Interdisciplinary Intensive Care, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, PolandDepartment of Palliative Medicine, Poznan University of Medical Sciences, Poznan, PolandDepartment of Pain Pharmacology, Institute of Pharmacology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Kraków, PolandDepartment of Pain Research and Treatment, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, PolandDepartment of Interdisciplinary Intensive Care, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, PolandDepartment of Interdisciplinary Intensive Care, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, PolandDepartment of Interdisciplinary Intensive Care, Jagiellonian University Medical College, Kraków, PolandOpioids comprise an important group of drugs used in cancer pain pharmacotherapy. In recent years, more and more studies have emerged indicating the potentially immunosuppressive effects of opioid analgesics and their serious consequences, including the risk of cancer progression. The identification of these risks has prompted a search for other effective, and most importantly, safer methods of perioperative analgesic management. Regional analgesia techniques, which allow for a significant reduction in opioid dosing and thus diminish the risk of immunosuppression associated with these drugs, seem to offer substantial hope in this respect. A number of studies available in the literature assess the effects of regional analgesia techniques on cancer progression; however, it is often difficult to interpret their results owing to several perioperative factors (such as surgical trauma, inadequate pain and stress relief, and hypothermia) which are also attributed immunosuppressive effects and tend to be implicated in increased risk of cancer progression. Further research is needed to verify the available data on both the potential adverse effects of opioids and the possible protective effects of regional analgesia techniques on cancer patients.http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/9293704
spellingShingle Renata Zajączkowska
Wojciech Leppert
Joanna Mika
Magdalena Kocot-Kępska
Jarosław Woroń
Anna Wrzosek
Jerzy Wordliczek
Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain Management
Pain Research and Management
title Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain Management
title_full Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain Management
title_fullStr Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain Management
title_full_unstemmed Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain Management
title_short Perioperative Immunosuppression and Risk of Cancer Progression: The Impact of Opioids on Pain Management
title_sort perioperative immunosuppression and risk of cancer progression the impact of opioids on pain management
url http://dx.doi.org/10.1155/2018/9293704
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