Results of a recent randomized parallel group study conducted at the Edinburgh Cancer Research Institute in the UK unveiled a new 2-step option for cancer main management which is more cost-effective than the standard 3-step analgesic ladder approach created decades ago by the World Health Organization (WHO). The authors of this study, led by Professor Marie T. Fallon state that study findings will be of particular interest "in low- and middle-income countries where weak opioids are expensive and switching complicated." Further, the study, the first of its kind to access the WHO analgesic ladder from a cost-effectiveness perspective, brought forth several findings, including that the 3-step approach (direct to strong opioid) did not results in fast pain relief that the 2-step (weak opioid approach).
To read more about this study, click here.
Sources mentioned:
Fallon M, Dierberger K, Leng M, et al. An international, open-label, randomised trial comparing a two-step approach versus the standard three-step approach of the WHO analgesic ladder in patients with cancer. Annals of Oncology 2022;33(12):1296-1303.
Bramati PS, Bruera E. The end of the second step of the World Health Organization analgesic ladder? Annals of Oncology 2022;33(12):1212-1213.
No comments:
Post a Comment