Critical Summaries of Innovations in Palliative Care Pharmacotherapy

ABSTRACT

Timely and important studies are reviewed and commentaries provided by leading palliative care clinicians. Symptoms, interventions, and treatment-related adverse events addressed in this issue are: the effect of sorafenib on sarcopenia; defining, classifying, and assessing cancer breakthrough pain; treatment of opioid-dependent human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) patients (clinic-based versus referred treatment); the predictors and course of depression in metastatic cancer patients; and the effectiveness of treatment agreements and urine analysis for reducing opioid misuse in outpatients with chronic noncancer pain.

KEYWORDS :

• Buprenorphine-naloxone
• cancer pain
• chronic noncancer pain
• depression
• HIV
• medications
• metastatic cancer
• oncology
• opioid dependence
• opioid misuse
• pain assessment