Treatment of terminal cancer pain in Finland. A questionnaire survey

A questionnaire concerning current practice in the treatment of cancer pain was sent to 783 Finnish physicians. This study is based on the replies from 421 physicians who stated that they at least sometimes see cancer patients. Three simulated patient cases were presented in the questionnaire, and the adequacy of the treatment suggestions was evaluated. The results indicated that drugs predominate in the treatment of cancer pain. The suggested doses of narcotic analgesics were well below the minimum effective daily doses. As many as half of the physicians failed to use the therapeutic modalities correctly, irrespective of the frequency of their seeing cancer patients. Education in effective pain treatment should therefore be intensified to ascertain that all physicians involved in clinical practice have satisfactory knowledge of the treatment of cancer pain.