4 strong opioids for treating colorectal cancer pain

Patients in the middle and late stages of colorectal cancer may experience severe pain, which is mainly caused by the spread of tumors to invade nerves or blood vessels. Severe cancer pain is an important cause of death in patients with advanced colorectal cancer. In order to alleviate the pain of patients, drug analgesia is required. Commonly used strong opioids are mainly the following.

1. Morphine

Morphine is a strong opioid analgesic that is worth recommending. Its duration of action is equal to its half-life, and the dose can be increased at any time according to the degree of pain. There are many routes of administration: oral analgesia lasts for a long time, with fewer complications, and the dose can be increased when it is ineffective; when oral administration is not possible, rectal, intravenous drip, intramuscular or subcutaneous injection, epidural space or subarachnoid space administration can be selected. Morphine is cheap and more suitable for the general public.

2. Fentanyl

Fentanyl is a potent μ-opioid receptor agonist with high affinity and intrinsic activity for μ-opioid receptors. It can cause analgesia and sedation in the central nervous system. It takes effect immediately after intravenous injection and lasts for about 30 minutes. It takes effect about 15 minutes after intramuscular injection and the drug effect can last for nearly 2 hours. It is suitable for continuous micro-dosage through the spinal canal and transdermal administration.

3. Methadone

The pharmacological effects of methadone are similar to those of morphine, but its advantage is that it is equally effective when taken orally or injected. Its analgesic intensity and duration are comparable to those of morphine. Tolerance and addiction develop slowly, making it suitable for cancer pain patients, with fewer side effects.

4. Buprenorphine

Buprenorphine is a derivative of thebaine. It is a long-acting, powerful analgesic with a strong analgesic effect, about 50 to 100 times that of morphine and 100 to 150 times that of pentazocine. It is an effective analgesic for moderate or severe pain. Most patients can achieve satisfactory pain control by taking the drug every 8 hours. Dissolve sublingually 0.4 mg each time, or inject intramuscularly 0.3 mg each time.