Ablation Procedures

Although ablation has a limited role in the management of chronic noncancer pain, ablation continues to help patients with treatment of refractory cancer-related pain. Interdisciplinary treatment involving supportive care, pain medicine, oncology, and neurosurgery is critical to optimizing the timing and outcome of neurosurgical ablative options for pain management. In this review, 3 targets for ablative surgery-the spinothalamic tract, the dorsal column's visceral pain pathway, and the anterior cingulate cortex-are discussed with a focus on patient selection and key aspects of surgical technique.