Attenuating pain flare: a new role for an old therapy?
Mené sur 298 patients présentant des métastases osseuses traitées par radiothérapie palliative, cet essai multicentrique de phase III évalue l'efficacité de la dexaméthasone pour prévenir la douleur liée aux rayonnements ionisants
Radiotherapy remains the gold standard treatment for cancer-induced bone pain. Meta-analyses have consistently shown that around a quarter of patients have complete pain relief after radiotherapy, and 50–80% of patients have some improvement.1 Encouraged by these findings, use of radiotherapy for treatment of bone pain has increased and, specifically, single fraction radiotherapy has been adopted as the primary treatment regimen.2 However, median survival after radiotherapy for bone pain is 6–8 months, and therefore, these patients are nearing the end of life.
The Lancet Oncology 2015