What You Should Know About Cancer Pain
Cancer is a disease that can sometimes cause intense pain that might affect your emotions, sleep, appetite, and overall ability to enjoy life. However, you do not need to tolerate cancer pain when there are multiple treatments you can receive from your doctor. To manage cancer pain in Delray Beach, you will need to communicate with your doctor to determine what might be triggering your pain. Learn more about cancer pain, its symptoms, causes, and possible treatment options to help you get the relief you need.
What Causes Cancer Pain?
The pain you feel from cancer can result from the tumor pressing your nerves, bones, or other organs of your body. It also depends on several factors, such as the extent and type of cancer. Also, if you are ailing from other health issues besides cancer, you might experience more intolerable pain.
You can also experience pain from cancer surgery, treatments and tests. Treatments such as chemotherapy and radiation can cause numbness, skin redness and irritation, burning sensations, or tingling in various parts of your body. Talk with your doctor to determine your pain’s cause, type, and extremity.
Symptoms of Cancer Pain
Several signs can indicate you are suffering from cancer pain, especially if you are unaware of your condition. Here are a few symptoms that your pain could be caused by cancer.
- Back pain that worsens when sitting, sneezing, etc.
- Overall body pain that worsens at night
- Pain characterized by unexplained weight loss, fever, or bleeding
- Unexplained pain that has no probable cause
If you experience any of the above symptoms, it would be best to visit your doctor for further diagnosis and treatment. If overlooked, you can develop chronic pain that can be difficult to treat.
What Are the Different Types of Cancer Pain?
There are different kinds of pain you might experience from cancer, including neuropathic, somatic, chronic, visceral, and acute pain. Neuropathic cancer pain occurs when the tumor pressures the nervous system on the nerves or spine. It often causes a tingling and a burning sensation.
Somatic cancer pain is a kind of pain that affects the tissues of your body, such as bones, joints, muscles, and ligaments. It often causes an achy and or stabbing feeling. Visceral cancer pain is felt in the soft internal organs such chest, pelvis, and abdomen. Visceral pain is hard to treat because it is hard to locate.
How Can You Manage and Treat Cancer Pain?
There are several ways you can treat cancer pain depending on its severity, cause, and effect on your body. For acute cancer pain, mild swelling, or fever, your doctor might recommend using over-the-counter prescription medications such as aspirin, ibuprofen, and naproxen. If you have severe cancer pain, your doctor might recommend using powerful opioids such as fentanyl.
In cases where medication has failed to treat or reduce your cancer pain, you might need to consider other effective treatment options, such as nerve injections and physical therapy. Non-medical treatments such as physical therapy help your body’s muscles and nerves relax. When this happens, your body becomes distracted from the pain and begins to send positive messages to the areas affected by the pain.
Cancer pain can be intolerable, but knowing about the type and extremity of your pain can help you understand how to manage it. A team of cancer pain specialists at Florida Pain Management Institute can help you understand your pain and provide the best treatment option. Also, if you notice an unfamiliar pain, call their office or book an appointment for a thorough check-up.
