ArticleEuropean journal of pain (London, England)2025
A genome-wide association study of European advanced cancer patients treated with opioids identifies regulatory variants on chromosome 20 associated with pain intensity.
Article in European journal of pain (London, England), 2025. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 5 papers.
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Who cites it
5 citing papers in PubMed.
- Cancer pain.Nature reviews. Disease primers · 2026Review
- The Pharmacogenomics of Opioid Response in Cancer Pain: From Receptor Polymorphisms to Tumour-Mediated Interference-A Narrative-Critical Review.International journal of molecular sciences · 2026Review
- Optimizing Opioid Use in Pain Management: A Comprehensive Review of Clinical Benefits, Risks, and Dependence.Healthcare (Basel, Switzerland) · 2026Review
- Cancer pain: molecular mechanisms and management.Molecular biomedicine · 2025Review
- A genome-wide association study of European advanced cancer patients treated with opioids identifies regulatory variants on chromosome 20 associated with pain intensity.European journal of pain (London, England) · 2025Article
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Authors and funding
15 authors.
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Abstract
backgroundOpioids in step III of the WHO analgesic ladder are the standard of care for treating cancer pain. However, a significant minority of patients do not benefit from therapy. Genetics might play a role in predisposing patients to a good or poor response to opioids. Here, we investigated this issue by conducting a genome-wide association study (GWAS).
methodsWe genotyped 2057 European advanced cancer patients treated with morphine, buprenorphine, fentanyl and oxycodone. We carried out a whole-genome regression model (using REGENIE software) between genotypes and the opioid response phenotype, defined as a numerical score measuring patient pain intensity.
resultsThe GWAS identified five non-coding variants on chromosome 20 with a p-value <5.0 × 10
conclusionsOur results support the role of genetics in the opioid response in advanced cancer patients. Further functional analyses are needed to understand the biological mechanism underlying the observed association and lead to the development of individualized pain treatment plans, ultimately improving the quality of life for cancer patients. SIGNIFICANCE STATEMENT: This genome-wide association study on European advanced cancer patients treated with opioids identifies novel regulatory variants on chromosome 20 (near PCMTD2 and OPRL1 genes) associated with pain intensity. These findings enhance our understanding of the genetic basis of opioid response, suggesting new potential markers for opioid efficacy. The study is a significant advancement in pharmacogenomics, providing a robust dataset and new insights into the genetic factors influencing pain intensity, which could lead to personalized cancer pain management.
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