ABSTRACT
BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVES:
Pain depreciates patients' quality of life, even influencing disease recovery. This study aimed at evaluating the prevalence of pain and opiophobia as barrier for the adequate management of cancer pain.
METHODS
Participated in the study 280 cancer patients in clinical treatment, who have answered a questionnaire made up of questions related to pain and use of opioid drugs. Demographic and clinical data were obtained by reviewing medical charts. The study was individually and randomly applied by the authors during outpatient visits.
RESULTS:
Prevalence of pain was 50.3%; 19.2% of patients would refuse morphine for pain control and fear of dependence was the most reported reason. The perception that morphine is directly related to worsening the disease was reported by 67.8% of respondents.
CONCLUSION:
A high prevalence of moderate and severe pain was found among studied patients, as well as a high prevalence of opiophobia.
Keywords:
Chronic pain; Fear; Morphine; Opioid analgesics; Pain