RCT Comparing the Analgesic Efficacy of 4 Therapeutic Strategies Based on 4 Different Major Opioids (Fentanyl, Oxycodone, Buprenorphine vs Morphine) in Cancer Patients With Moderate/Severe Pain, at the Moment of Starting 3rd Step of WHO Analgesic Ladder.

Summary

Pain, in neoplastic disease, is a symptom with severe negative impact on the quality of life of patients and a high incidence, with values around 70-90% in advanced and metastatic stages. Than 20 years the main reference for the pharmacological treatment of cancer pain are the guidelines produced by the World Health Organization (WHO). This document shows that the use of opioid drugs is the mainstay of treatment, with particular reference to opioids "major" (3 rd step of the analgesic ladder). The 4 opioids more most commonly prescribed in Italy (oral morphine and oxycodone, fentanyl and buprenorphine transdermal), based on the data currently available, have an analgesic effect would partly overlap but with different percentages of non-responders (NR), a different need to increase the dose over time to maintain adequate analgesia, a different action to the switch to another molecule for ineffectiveness analgesic. The observations described suggest that opioids, although they belong to the same family drug may not be fully comparable with regard to the clinical effects products. Important differences are known on the pharmacokinetic and pharmacodynamic and, more recently, also in terms of pharmacogenomics. This is a comparative study of analgesic strategies based on the use of the 4 mentioned opioids, going to look for possible differences in terms of analgesic efficacy, changes in dose over time, use of switch or permanent abandonment of treatment, parallel to the contour of the side effects. The associated sub-project will link the structure gene of patients and clinical results have emerged.

Timeline

Start

2011-04

Primary completion

2014-10

Completion

2014-10

Publications

• Background Apolone G, Bertetto O, Caraceni A, Corli O, De Conno F, Labianca R, Maltoni M, Nicora M, Torri V, Zucco F; Cancer Pain Outcome Research Study Group. Pain in cancer. An outcome research project to evaluate the epidemiology, the quality and the effects of pain treatment in cancer patients. Health Qual Life Outcomes. 2006 Feb 2;4:7. doi: 10.1186/1477-7525-4-7.
• Background Apolone G, Corli O, Caraceni A, Negri E, Deandrea S, Montanari M, Greco MT; Cancer Pain Outcome Research Study Group (CPOR SG) Investigators. Pattern and quality of care of cancer pain management. Results from the Cancer Pain Outcome Research Study Group. Br J Cancer. 2009 May 19;100(10):1566-74. doi: 10.1038/sj.bjc.6605053. Epub 2009 Apr 28.
• Background Greco MT, Corli O, Montanari M, Deandrea S, Zagonel V, Apolone G; Writing Protocol Committee; Cancer Pain Outcome Research Study Group (CPOR SG) Investigators. Epidemiology and pattern of care of breakthrough cancer pain in a longitudinal sample of cancer patients: results from the Cancer Pain Outcome Research Study Group. Clin J Pain. 2011 Jan;27(1):9-18. doi: 10.1097/AJP.0b013e3181edc250.
• Background Apolone G, Deandrea S, Montanari M, Corli O, Greco MT, Cavuto S. Evaluation of the comparative analgesic effectiveness of transdermal and oral opioids in cancer patients: a propensity score analysis. Eur J Pain. 2012 Feb;16(2):229-38. doi: 10.1002/j.1532-2149.2011.00020.x. Epub 2011 Dec 19.
• Background Corli O, Montanari M, Deandrea S, Greco MT, Villani W, Apolone G. An exploratory analysis on the effectiveness of four strong opioids in patients with cancer pain. Pain Med. 2012 Jul;13(7):897-907. doi: 10.1111/j.1526-4637.2012.01408.x. Epub 2012 Jun 8.
• Corli O, Caldirola L, Galli F, Torri V, Garattini S, Rulli E, Apolone G. Analgesic efficacy in women and men with cancer pain, treated with strong opioids: are there differences? BMJ Oncol. 2026 Apr 2;5(1):e001024. doi: 10.1136/bmjonc-2025-001024. eCollection 2026.
• Corli O, Roberto A, Bennett MI, Galli F, Corsi N, Rulli E, Antonione R. Nonresponsiveness and Susceptibility of Opioid Side Effects Related to Cancer Patients' Clinical Characteristics: A Post-Hoc Analysis. Pain Pract. 2018 Jul;18(6):748-757. doi: 10.1111/papr.12669. Epub 2018 Jan 17.
• Corli O, Floriani I, Roberto A, Montanari M, Galli F, Greco MT, Caraceni A, Kaasa S, Dragani TA, Azzarello G, Luzzani M, Cavanna L, Bandieri E, Gamucci T, Lipari G, Di Gregorio R, Valenti D, Reale C, Pavesi L, Iorno V, Crispino C, Pacchioni M, Apolone G; CERP STUDY OF PAIN GROUP (List of collaborators). Are strong opioids equally effective and safe in the treatment of chronic cancer pain? A multicenter randomized phase IV 'real life' trial on the variability of response to opioids. Ann Oncol. 2016 Jun;27(6):1107-1115. doi: 10.1093/annonc/mdw097. Epub 2016 Mar 2.

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