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Study on Quality of Life in Advanced Cancer Patients With Opioid-induced Constipation Treated With Naloxegol

ABSTRACT: Opioid-Induced Constipation (OIC) is often associated with a compromised quality of life of patients in palliative care (PC) setting. Among the Peripherally-Acting Mu-Opioid Receptor Antagonists, Naloxegol is the most effective to treat OIC and to improve OIC-related aspects of quality of life in patients with non-cancer pain. This observational study aims to assess the impact of a 4-weeks Naloxegol therapy on the quality of life in advanced cancer patients with OIC assisted by a home PC program. The study is enrolling cancer patients with OIC (defined according to Rome IV criteria) not relieved by first-line laxatives, starting the therapy with 25 mg/day of Naloxegol. The main parameters evaluated at the beginning of the therapy (T0) and after 28 days (T28) are: Patient Assessment of Constipation Quality-of-Life (PAC-QoL, 4 subscales: physical discomfort, psychosocial discomfort, worries and concerns, satisfaction), evaluation of objective (number of weekly evacuations) and subjective constipation (Bowel Function Index, BFI, normal score<30), pain assessment by NRS.

DISEASE(S): Palliative Care,Opioid-induced Constipation,Constipation,Constipation Drug Induced,Opioid Use,Cancer

PROVIDER: 2332026 | ecrin-mdr-crc |

REPOSITORIES: ECRIN MDR

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Project description:Approximately 70-80% of patients with advanced disease will be affected by moderate to severe pain. Opioid analgesics represented by morphine and oxycodone are the cornerstone of cancer-pain management, and recommended for use in the management of moderate to severe cancer pain according to WHO Cancer Pain Relief Guidelines. One view is that a trial of systemic opioid therapy should be administered to all cancer patients with pain of moderate or greater severity regardless of the pain mechanism. Although opioids analgesics do work well as relieving pain and improving quality of life via their action at opioid receptors in the central nervous system (CNS) and the peripheral nervous system, they also have powerful adverse effects. The overall occurrence of opioid-related adverse drug events has ranged from1.8% to 13.6%. Opioid-induced constipation (OIC), one of the most prevalent adverse events (AEs) in patients receiving opioid analgesics, defined as a change in baseline bowel habits or defecatory patterns following initiation, alteration, or increase in opioid therapy. The prevalence of OIC has been estimated to affect 41% of patients with chronic noncancer pain taking opioids and 94% of cancer patients taking opioids for pain. Unlike many other opioid-related AEs, OIC is persistent and rarely tolerated. OIC impacts pain control, patients’ quality of life and may cause patients to reduce the dose or discontinue opioid use. Acupuncture, a traditional Chinese medicine, has been used to treat gastrointestinal disease including constipation for thousands of years. Two systematic reviews concluded that acupuncture can improve spontaneous bowel movements for functional constipation, and our recent study indicated that electroacupuncture(EA) could increase complete spontaneous bowel movements and is safe for chronic severe functional constipation. Acupuncture could improve gastrointestinal function via facilitating gastrointestinal motility. Currently, there is little detailed information available regarding the acupuncture use for OIC. The objective of this study is to assess the efficacy and safety of EA for OIC in patients with cancer.

Project description:More than 70% of patients with cancer in the palliative phase have pain that often requires treatment with opioids (morphine-like agents). Constipation occurs in 59% of patients treated with opioids. Opioid-induced constipation (OIC) has consequences that range from daily discomfort with social insecurity and disability to intestinal obstruction. It leads to limitations in self-management, a reduced quality of life and a risk of the need for more care. In the guideline "Diagnosis and treatment of pain in patients with cancer" it is recommended to start preventively with an osmotic laxative such as macrogol/electrolytes or magnesium hydroxide when starting opioids. Macrogol/electrolytes has been proven to be effective for OIC, but is sometimes perceived by patients as unpleasant due to its taste. Magnesium hydroxide, which is less commonly prescribed for OIC, has a neutral taste. Although it is mentioned in the guideline, it is not studied for the treatment of OIC and also not officially registered for this. To support the advice of the guideline and to prove that a choice is possible, it is important to investigate whether there are differences in effectiveness and/or side effects between macrogol/electrolytes and magnesium hydroxide in the prevention of OIC. The aim of this study is to compare macrogol/electrolytes with magnesium hydroxide in the prevention of opioid-induced constipation in patients with cancer in the palliative (incurable) phase, who start opioids because of pain. The choice of laxative is determined by drawing lots (randomisation). After two weeks, its effect will be assessed and will be presented as the percentage of patients who have not developed constipation after starting opioids. If the laxative, as assigned by lot, is described as satisfactory by the patient, the patient can continue with the drug that the patient used, after the study through regular prescription. The investigators will ask the patients in the study about their satisfaction with the laxative used, any side effects and the degree of pain. Furthermore, the appeal to care for possible constipation will be examined. Because the best attainable quality of life in the palliative phase is the objective of all care, the investigators will also measure this perceived quality with a questionnaire in this study. The results of this study will lead to the best achievable prevention of opioid constipation in patients with cancer in the palliative phase.

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Study on Quality of Life in Advanced Cancer Patients With Opioid-induced Constipation Treated With Naloxegol

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