Barriers to Adequate Pain Control and Opioid Use Among Cancer Survivors: Implications for Nursing Practice

Cancer survivors can experience long-term negative effects from cancer and its treatment. Pain is one of the most common and distressing symptoms that cancer survivors experience. Opioids are often prescribed for pain; however, cancer survivors who have completed active treatment may have unique challenges with regard to pain management.

The aim of this study was to explore barriers to pain management and perceptions of opioid use among cancer survivors.

This research was an exploratory pilot study using in-depth qualitative interviews with adult cancer survivors who were recruited from community-based survivorship organizations. Data were analyzed using applied thematic analysis techniques.

Participants (n = 25) were mostly women (96%), diagnosed with breast cancer (88%) and stages I to III disease (84%), with a mean age of 56.2 years. Three themes on barriers to adequate pain control emerged: (1) taking just enough to take the edge off: self-medicating behaviors and nonadherence to prescribed regimen; (2) lack of insurance coverage and costly alternative pain treatment options; and (3) chronicity of cancer-related pain not adequately addressed and often mismanaged.

Discussions with cancer survivors unveiled personal accounts of unmanaged pain resulting from limited pain management/opioid education, fear of opioid addiction, negative perceptions/experiences with opioids, lack of insurance coverage for alternative pain therapies, and regulatory policies limiting access to opioids.

There is a clear need for improved access to multimodal pain management options and nonopioid alternatives for cancer survivors. Oncology nurses should endeavor to support policies and procedures aimed at opioid education, training, and legislation.