Pain management for pancreatic cancer

I have no personal experience with this (yet), but this sounds so difficult and excruciating for both of you! Given how much med he is having to take in order to get a little control, I would get in touch with your oncologist ASAP, at this point probably Monday morning. Be very specific about when this started and the meds and doses he's having to take in order to get just a little relief, and ask about options. Do you have a palliative care MD? At my cancer center, I was referred to a palliative doc at the same time I was referred to an oncologist. The palliative MD would likely be the one to work on pain management, I think, but if you don't have one, get your oncologist to intercede so hopefully you can get a quick appointment with the palliative MD. (I get what you're saying about the time it takes to get appointments. So frustrating!) I hope you can get some info and relief for him as quickly as possible.

Thank you. We have been working with palliative care and they initiated the change from morphine to fentanyl. I put in a call to them too because we’re not getting the expected results.

Good--glad you called palliative. If you can't get relief this weekend, I wouldn't hesitate to take him to the emergency room. I would go to the hospital affiliated with my cancer center; that way the records should be linked, and it'll be clear that he has a diagnosis. (My brother, who was undiagnosed at the time, was in pain and was labeled drug-seeking, so he didn't get help until much later.) Obviously the ER will cost you $$ and hassle, but...

My mom was diagnosed with stage 4 pan can in late July. She is now taking 15 mg of morphine scheduled at 6am, 2pm and 10. She takes two Percocet with an extra Tylenol for breakthrough pain and this has been very effective. She feels as if the morphine really doesn’t do anything. She feels so good after taking the Percocet. She can take it every 4 hours and usually it’s between 4-6. When she is not on top of her pain meds , it is extremely hard to catch up. Hope this helps

Thank you. That aligns to what I’ve been reading that it’s important to stay ahead of the pain.

You may want to ask about Hydromorphone(Dilaudid)for breakthrough pain. It is stronger than morphine or oxycodone.

Hi @lizduffey, I thought I'd check in. How are you doing? Did they find something to help manage your husband's pain?

Hello, he ended up being admitted to the hospital and working with on-site palliative team. They have him dilaudid in the hospital but then did a Celiac Plexus block procedure and that helped bring the pain level down a notch. At home he is still taking oxy and was able to start chemo. Thanks for checking

I am so glad he got the block done as that helped me more than both high levels of dilaudid and fentanyl combined. I have also tried most other prescription paid meds with little success. My constant abdominal pain was a 10 out of 10 before the block. Another game changer for controlling pain has been medical marijuana. I highly recommend tinctures, and I have heard great things about edibles.

Hello, which block did you get? He received one that temporarily numbs the nerves but there is also a permanent neurolysis one that he can go back and get. His pain is still very high but more manageable since the block. I hope you get relief too.