ArticleThe oncologist2022
Methadone as First-line Opioid for the Management of Cancer Pain.
Article in The oncologist, 2022. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 13 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
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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.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
13 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it, 29 citations in OpenAlex.
- Pooled it
- Disrupted circadian rhythms and opioid-mediated adverse effects: Bidirectional relationship and putative mechanisms.Journal of neuroendocrinology · 2025Review
- The Oncometabolite 2-Hydroxyglutarate Is Upregulated in Post-Prostatectomy PSA Recurrence of Prostate Cancer: A Metabolomic Analysis.Molecules (Basel, Switzerland) · 2025Article
- Methadone to treat chemotherapy-induced peripheral neuropathy (METACIN): study protocol.Pain management · 2025Article
- Methadone in Cancer-Related Neuropathic Pain: A Narrative Review.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2024Review
- Opioid use and subsequent delirium risk in patients with advanced cancer in palliative care: a multicenter registry study.Scientific reports · 2024Article
- Article
- Management of pain in cancer patients - an update.Ecancermedicalscience · 2024Article
- Intravenous methadone in the management of acute postoperative pain in a chronic cancer pain patient: A case report and review of the literature.Clinical case reports · 2023Article
- Cancer Pain Management: A Narrative Review of Current Concepts, Strategies, and Techniques.Current oncology (Toronto, Ont.) · 2023Review
- Intravenous Methadone for Perioperative and Chronic Cancer Pain: A Review of the Literature.Drugs · 2023Review
- Review
- The Use of Low-Dose Methadone as Add-On to Ongoing Opioid Treatment in Palliative Cancer Care-An Underrated Treatment?Life (Basel, Switzerland) · 2022Review
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
7 authors at 4 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
aimThe aim of this study was to assess the efficacy and adverse effects of methadone when used as first-line therapy in patients that are either receiving low doses of opioids or none.
methodsPatients with advanced cancer were prospectively assessed. Opioid-naive patients (L-group) were started with methadone at 6 mg/day. Patients receiving weak or other opioids in doses of <60 mg/day of OME (H-group) were started with methadone at 9 mg/day. Methadone doses were changed according to the clinical needs to obtain the most favorable balance between analgesia and adverse effects. Edmonton Symptom Asssement Score (ESAS), Memorial Delirium Assessment Score (MDAS), doses of methadone, and the use of adjuvant drugs were recorded before starting the study treatment (T0), 1 week after (T7), 2 weeks after (T14), 1 month after (T30), and 2 months after (T60). Methadone escalation index percent (MEI%) and in mg (MEImg) were calculated at T30 and T60.
resultsEighty-two patients were assessed. In both groups H and L, there were significant changes in pain and symptom intensity at the different times during the study. Adverse effects as causes of drop-out were minimal. Mean MEImg was 0.09 (SD 0.28) and 0.02 (SD 0.07) at T30 and T60, respectively. MEI% was 1.01 (SD 3.08) and 0.27 (SD 0.86) at T30 and T60, respectively.
conclusionMethadone used as a first-line opioid therapy provided good analgesia with limited adverse effects and a minimal opioid-induced tolerance.
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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.