Evaluation of Pressure Ulcers in 202 Patients with Cancer

Countermeasures for pressure ulcers, which have been promoted as a national policy in Japan since 2002, have reduced the development of new pressure ulcers due to insufficient observation or treatment. On the other hand, it has become clear that pressure ulcers continue to develop in patients with cancer. The authors evaluated 419 patients (202 of whom had cancer) who had newly developed pressure ulcers. The following results were obtained: 1) among patients with terminal illnesses, cancer patients outnumbered noncancer patients; 2) there was no difference between the cancer patient group and the noncancer patient group regarding time required to heal ulcers; 3) there was no difference between the groups in the time from the development of pressure ulcer until the patients died; 4) patients with cancer were more likely to develop pressure ulcers compared to patients without cancer, even though their risk scores analysis were not high. In addition to providing enough anodynes, sedatives, and extra-soft mattresses, it is necessary to modify risk assessment measures because cancer is a risk factor for pressure ulcer development.