Abstract
Background & Aims : To access the present state of truth-telling of cancer diagnosis and cancer pain management at Takasaki National Hospital.
Methods : Physicians were polled by questionnaire.
Results : Twenty-five of 48 physicians responded, and the results were as follows : truth-telling of cancer diagnosis was done by 32% of the responding doctors. A “case by case” response was given by the other 68%, and the majority gave priority to the family's wishes. As for epinephrine medication into the heart and heart massage, the doctors who replied “not performed” were 88% and 72%, respectively. Concerning cancer pain, 92% of the doctors relied on the patient's complaint for its assessment. Mostly, the order of painkiller medication was first non-steroid anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) and then soon on to morphine, with the use of pentazocine between the two. Forty-two percent of the physicians told their patients that they were being treated with morphine. The most common reasons for discontinuing morphine were “difficulty of intake” (34%) and “side effects” (32%), highlighting the importance of the management of side effects.
Conclusions : Education for the physicians before and after graduated university is important for the development of palliative care in the area kernel hospital.
