Trial reportClinical drug investigation2007
Tramadol in the treatment of neuropathic cancer pain: a double-blind, placebo-controlled study.
Trial report in Clinical drug investigation, 2007. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT05311774 (Efficacy of Duloxetine in Conjunction With Tramadol for Chronic Cancer Pain), which is not on this map. Cited by 18 papers, 6 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Efficacy of Duloxetine in Conjunction With Tramadol for Chronic Cancer Pain
Who cites it
18 citing papers in PubMed, 6 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 68 citations in OpenAlex.
- Adjusted Indirect and Mixed Comparisons of Drug Therapy for Neuropathic Cancer Pain.Pain research & management · 2026Pooled it
- The use of tramadol for cancer-associated pain-a systematic review.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2025Pooled it
- Executive summary of the Clinical Guidelines of Pharmacotherapy for Neuropathic Pain: second edition by the Japanese Society of Pain Clinicians.Journal of anesthesia · 2018Guideline
- Tramadol for neuropathic pain in adults.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2017Pooled it
- Tramadol with or without paracetamol (acetaminophen) for cancer pain.The Cochrane database of systematic reviews · 2017Pooled it
- Opioids in people with cancer-related pain.BMJ clinical evidence · 2008Pooled it
- Phase III study of bilayer sustained-release tramadol tablets in patients with cancer pain: a double-blind parallel-group, non-inferiority study with immediate-release tramadol capsules as an active comparator.Supportive care in cancer : official journal of the Multinational Association of Supportive Care in Cancer · 2023Trial
- Cancer Pain Is Not One-Size-Fits-All: Evolving from Tradition to Precision.Clinics and practice · 2025Review
- Metabotropic Glutamate Receptor 5: A Potential Target for Neuropathic Pain Treatment.Current neuropharmacology · 2025Review
- Neuropathic Pain in Cancer: What Are the Current Guidelines?Current treatment options in oncology · 2024Review
- Cancer Pain Management: A Narrative Review of Current Concepts, Strategies, and Techniques.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2023Review
- Review
- A Comprehensive Algorithm for Management of Neuropathic Pain.Pain medicine (Malden, Mass.) · 2019Review
- [Differential indications of opioids in pain therapy].Der Anaesthesist · 2017Review
- Symptom management in the older adult: 2015 update.Clinics in geriatric medicine · 2015Review
- Efficacy of goshajinkigan for oxaliplatin-induced peripheral neuropathy in colorectal cancer patients.Journal of oncology · 2013Article
- Is mechanism and symptom-based analgesia an answer to opioid-induced hyperalgesia?Indian journal of palliative careArticle
- Use of lidocaine patches for neuropathic pain in a comprehensive cancer centre.Pain research & managementArticle
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
2 authors at 2 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectiveTo assess the efficacy, safety and impact on quality of life of tramadol in the treatment of neuropathic pain in patients with cancer.
methodsPatients with similar characteristics were grouped in pairs and randomised to receive either tramadol or placebo. The initial tramadol dosage was 1 mg/kg every 6 hours, increasing to 1.5 mg/kg every 6 hours if necessary to control pain.
resultsThe study enrolled 36 patients (22 women, 14 men), with a mean age of 50 years. In the group receiving tramadol (n = 18), major improvements in pain intensity and Karnofsky scores occurred (p < 0.001), sleep quality improved by day 45 (p < 0.05) activities of daily living improved (p < 0.05), and use of analgesics that had been taken before the study was reduced (p < 0.05) compared with the placebo group. There was no difference between the groups with regard to changes in the Zung Depression Scale, Beck Anxiety Inventory scores and neurophysiological assessments. More patients in the tramadol group experienced adverse events (p < 0.05). The most common adverse events were nausea, vomiting and constipation.
conclusionsTramadol is a therapeutic option for the control of neuropathic pain in patients with cancer, and appears to improve quality of life in these patients. The analgesic effect of tramadol is independent of changes in anxiety, depression and nervous system function.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.