Breakthrough cancer pain: an observational study of 1000 European oncology patients.

Context: Breakthrough pain is common in patients with cancer and is a significant cause of morbidity in this group of patients.

Objectives: The aim of this study was to characterize breakthrough pain in a diverse population of cancer patients.

Methods: The study involved 1000 cancer patients from 13 European countries.

Multi-centre European study of breakthrough cancer pain: pain characteristics and patient perceptions of current and potential management strategies.

This study involved 320 cancer patients from four Northern European countries. Patients with breakthrough pain were questioned about the characteristics of their pain, the current management of their pain, and the acceptability/utility of alternative routes of administration. The median number of episodes was 3/day.