How to improve pain in breast cancer patients? Review of the latest clinical trials

: Breast cancer is the third most common cancer within the world, and pain is the most common and annoying symptom of breast cancer patients, which can influence their performance and quality of life. The purpose of this study is to review the latest clinical trials conducted in the field of pain relief in breast cancer patients. Methods: This study is a systematic review by assessing and collecting clinical trial articles from Databases Elsevier, Magiran, PubMed, Web of Science, Scopus and use of Google Scholar search engine for grey literature with keywords of Breast Neoplasms, Pain, Clinical Trials and related synonyms and Standard English equivalents (MeSH) were published during the time range of ۲۰۱۰ to ۲۰۲۴. The search strategy was designed as (("Breast Neoplasms"[Mesh]) AND "Pain"[Mesh]) AND "Clinical Trial" [Publication Type]. The search was performed without language restrictions, and articles without abstracts or full text and conference articles were excluded. After eliminating duplicated and non-related articles, we applied ۳۳ articles with inclusion criteria to our study. Two researchers first screened articles by scanning titles and abstracts and then read the full text of eligible articles to decide whether they should be included in the study. The third person supervised the process of data extraction. Results: According to studies, yoga, foot reflexology, shoulder strengthening exercises, Swedish and aerobic exercises reduce the pain intensity and the need for opioids in women with breast cancer. Early physical therapy and breathing exercises are effective in reducing chronic pain. Comparison of rehabilitation program with and without kinesiotype is effective on shoulder pain after mastectomy. Cognitive-behavioral therapy integrated with mindfulness, cognitive-hypnotherapy, cognitive-behavioral group therapy and stress management are effective in reducing perceived pain and pain self-efficacy in breast cancer patients. Individual training of stress and pain coping skills as well as treatment based on acceptance and commitment lead to pain improvement. Cryoneurolysis of the intercostal nerve for pain control in patients with post-mastectomy pain syndrome showed a significant reduction in pain up to ۶ months after. Results of studies show that transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation reduces the pain of modified radical mastectomy. In general, acupuncture interventions reduce pain in breast cancer patients, but its effect appears in the long term. Virtual reality is an effective technique to reduce pain in people with cancer in the short term. According to researches, no significant effect was found on the reduction of patients' pain through other local treatments. Conclusion: According to the findings, most of the complementary methods of pain reduction are reported to be cheap, available and effective, and since each patient is unique, therefore, a personal pain management plan is suggested in consultation with healthcare professionals for these patients be considered.

کلیدواژه ها:

Breast Neoplasms ، Pain ، Clinical Trials