ClinicalTrials.gg
Status unknownNCT04795739Updated Jun 21, 2021

Evaluation of ESMO Guidelines Applicability and Adherence in Cancer Pain Management in the Palliative Care Setting

An observational study in Cancer Pain, Pain and Cancer, sponsored by Antea Foundation. Status unknown at 8 sites in Italy. Open to participants aged 18 Years and older. Per ClinicalTrials.gov, last updated 2021-06-21.

Sponsored by Antea Foundation · Observational

The sponsor has not verified this record recently (last verified Jun 2021), so the status shown — last known as Recruiting — may be out of date.
Study type
Observational
Model
Cohort
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrollment
500
Ages
18 Years and older
Sex
All
01

Study summary

Palliative care (PC) is focused on improving the Quality of Life (QoL) of patients living with a life-threatening illness. Each year, an estimated 40 million people need PC management in the world. In the European Union, it is estimated that about 4,5 million of people are in the need of PC every year, with about 40% affected by malignant neoplasia.

Data from a recent systematic review of the literature report that the prevalence of pain is 66% (95% confidence interval 58-75) in cancer patients with advanced stages of the disease. In 52% of cases, pain was moderate or severe in intensity (NRS, Numeric Rating Scale ≥4). Furthermore, in addition to the basic pain, having characteristics of continuity over time even in the presence of fluctuations in intensity, the presence of acute painful episodes must also be considered, which are defined with the term of Breakthrough Cancer Pain, (BTcP), whose prevalence is estimated between 21 and 59%.

The positive impact on the quality of life of cancer patients of adhering to current guidelines has been amply demonstrated. Recently, new guidelines or recommendations produced by scientific societies have published, including the European Association of Palliative Care, the National Comprehensive Cancer Network and the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO).

In clinical facilities directly involved in the treatment of pain in cancer patients, implementing the directives set out in the guidelines appears to be a correct objective for the appropriateness of treatments. Nevertheless, there are no studies in Europe that have evaluated the applicability and adherence to guidelines in the treatment of cancer pain in advanced cancer patients. The present study intends to collect detailed information on the characteristics of pain and the treatment in a population of cancer patients cared by a network of specialized palliative care centers in order to assess the applicability and adherence of the latest European guidelines published by ESMO in 2018 for the treatment of pain in the specific area.

02

Conditions studied

  • Cancer Pain
  • Pain
  • Cancer

Keywords

  • Palliative care
  • Pain
  • Cancer
03

In context

Cancer Pain

310 studies on the registry are indexed under Cancer Pain; 73 are open to participants now.

This study's planned enrollment of 500 is above the median of 151 across 61 observational studies indexed under Cancer Pain.

Browse Cancer Pain studies →

Lead sponsor

Antea Foundation is the lead sponsor of 3 studies on the registry; none are open to participants now.

Counted across the registry records on this site, refreshed daily.

04

Who can participate

Ages eligible
18 Years and older
Sexes eligible
All
Accepts healthy volunteers
No
Sampling method
Probability sample

Study population

Cancer patients with pain in palliative care setting.

Go through the criteria one by one — yes, no or not sure — and take the list to your doctor or the study team. Kept in this browser only.

Inclusion criteria

  • age >18 years;
  • cancer diagnosis;
  • patient enrolled within 48h from admission in PC;
  • presence of pain with or without analgesic therapy or absence of pain being already on ATC analgesic therapy;
  • longer than two weeks;
  • written patient .

Exclusion criteria

Exclusion Criteria:

  • diagnosis of primary brain tumor or leukemia (acute or chronic);
  • clinical conditions that, at Investigator evaluation, prevent the follow up visits;
  • absence of pain without analgesic therapy.
Terms in these criteria, in plain language(2)

Underlined terms in the criteria open these too. Explained by clinicaltrials.gg, not part of the registry record. The study team decides who can take part.

Life expectancy

The study doctor’s estimate of how long someone is likely to live. Criteria use it so that people can stay in the study long enough for it to answer its question.

Informed consent

Before you join, the study team explains what taking part involves — its purpose, what happens, the risks and possible benefits — and answers your questions, so you can decide freely. Consent is usually recorded on a form (the informed consent form, ICF) signed by you or, where the law allows, by someone legally authorised to decide for you.

You can keep asking questions during the study, you are told of new information that matters, and you can choose to leave at any time.

05

Study design

Observational model
Cohort
Time perspective
Prospective
Enrollment
500 participants (estimated)
Patient registry
No
06

What researchers measure

Primary outcomes

  1. Adherence to ESMO (European Society of Medical Oncology) 2018 Guidelines

    The assessment of the adherence of pain treatments to the ESMO 2018 guidelines will be carried out assigning to the 52 recommendations a score of 1 if the recommendation has been satisfied on the patient, 0 if it has not been satisfied and missing if the recommendation was not applicable. A total score will then be calculated for each patient, obtained from the sum of the score for each recommendation divided by the number of applicable recommendations. The percentage of adherence to each single recommendation and to the total of recommendations on all patients will also be calculated.

    Time frame: Day 14 (final visit).

07

Study locations

7 of 8 sites recruiting
  • Hospice Alba Chiara
    Lanciano, Chieti, Italy
    Recruiting
  • Hospice Torrevecchia Teatina
    Torrevecchia Teatina, Chieti, Italy
    Recruiting
  • Hospice "La Torre sul Colle"
    Spoleto, Perugia, Italy
    Recruiting
  • Hospice Carlo Chenis
    Civitavecchia, Roma, Italy
    Recruiting
  • Centro Residenziale di Leniterapia "Roberto Ciabatti"
    Grosseto, Italy
    Not yet recruiting
  • Antea Foundation
    Roma, 00135, Italy
    Recruiting
  • Centro di Cure Palliative "Insieme nella Cura" - Policlinico Universitario - Campus Bio-Medico (Roma)
    Roma, Italy
    Recruiting
  • Fondazione FARO
    Torino, Italy
    Recruiting
08

Timeline

Tracking since Sep 25, 2026
ElapsedEstimatedEstimated, not yet reachedSimilar studies: half by the dot; the band is the middle halfHalf of similar studies reached it by the dot; the band is the middle half, from a quarter to three quarters

Started Jan 2021 (actual). Primary completion is estimated for Apr 2022, 15 months after the start.

Of 25 observational studies under Cancer Pain, half reached primary completion within 24 months of starting (the median), counting those still running; a quarter within 16 and three quarters within 40. This study's planned 15 months is below that.

How these figures are worked out, and which studies are left out of them.

Registered
Feb 17, 2021
First posted
Mar 12, 2021
StartActual
Jan 7, 2021
Primary completionEst.
Apr 7, 2022
CompletionEst.
Apr 7, 2022
Last update
Jun 21, 2021
What these dates mean
Start.
When the first participant enrolled; while estimated, when the study expects to open to recruitment.
Primary completion.
When the last participant was examined or treated to collect data for the study's main question, its primary outcome. A study that stopped early gives the date its data collection stopped.
Completion.
When the last participant's last visit took place, for every outcome, secondary ones and side effects included: the end of the study. Often later than primary completion, sometimes the same day.
Actual and Est.
Actual means the registry says the date has happened. Est. (estimated) is a date the sponsor plans or expects. It can still move, and the sponsor is expected to change it to actual once it has passed.
No changes since tracking began. The registry record was last updated on Jun 21, 2021, before this site started recording changes on Sep 25, 2026. Its history is on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗
09

Registry details

Key details

Study ID
NCT04795739
Lead sponsor
Antea Foundation
Collaborators
Istituto Di Ricerche Farmacologiche Mario Negri
Responsible party
Sponsor
First posted
Mar 12, 2021
Start date
Jan 7, 2021
Primary completion
Apr 7, 2022 (estimated)
Completion
Apr 7, 2022 (estimated)
Last update
Jun 21, 2021

Study contacts

Chiara Mastroianni
Contact
c.mastroianni@antea.net
+3906303321
Giuseppe Casale
principal investigator · Antea Foundation

Oversight

Data monitoring committee
No
FDA-regulated drug
No
FDA-regulated device
No
View the source record on ClinicalTrials.gov ↗

Not currently enrolling

This study is status unknown, as verified in Jun 2021. You cannot join it, but the record below documents what was studied.

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