The Impact of CT-Guided Cordotomy on Severe Cancer Pain
- 1Division of Algology, Department of Anesthesiology, Medical Faculty, Akdeniz University, 07070 Antalya, Turkey
- 2Department of Anesthesiology, Medical Faculty, Akdeniz University, 07070 Antalya, Turkey
- 3Private Pain Management Clinic, 07070 Antalya, Turkey
Abstract
Background: Severe cancer-related pain remains a major clinical challenge in patients with advanced malignancies and may persist despite multimodal analgesic treatment. Objective: This study evaluated short-term clinical outcomes and complications associated with computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous cordotomy for severe, unilateral cancer-related pain. Design: This retrospective single-center case series included 21 patients with treatment-refractory cancer pain who underwent CT-guided cordotomy between 2019 and 2024. Pain intensity, functional status, and opioid consumption were assessed at baseline and at the standardized 1-month follow-up using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS), and daily morphine milligram equivalents (MME), respectively. Results: At 1 month, the mean VAS score decreased from 9.95 to 0.90 (p < 0.001), mean daily MME decreased from 876.00 to 205.62 mg/day (p < 0.001), and mean KPS increased from 38.10 to 69.52 (p < 0.001). No permanent or major complications were documented during the available 1-month follow-up. Conclusions: In this retrospective single-center case series, CT-guided percutaneous cordotomy was associated with marked short-term reductions in pain intensity and opioid requirements and improvement in functional status at 1 month in patients with severe, unilateral cancer pain refractory to conventional therapy. Given the small sample size, absence of a control group, and limited follow-up duration, these findings should be considered preliminary and should not be interpreted as establishing definitive efficacy or safety.
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BibTeX
@article{dagistan2026impact,
title = {{The Impact of CT-Guided Cordotomy on Severe Cancer Pain}},
author = {Gozde Dagistan and Fatih Kursad Bahcivan and Nurten Kayacan and Mert Akbas and Bilge Karsli},
journal = {Journal of Clinical Medicine},
year = {2026},
month = oct,
doi = {10.3390/jcm15218270},
url = {https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/21/8270},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The Impact of CT-Guided Cordotomy on Severe Cancer Pain
AU - Gozde Dagistan
AU - Fatih Kursad Bahcivan
AU - Nurten Kayacan
AU - Mert Akbas
AU - Bilge Karsli
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/10/23
JO - Journal of Clinical Medicine
DO - 10.3390/jcm15218270
UR - https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0383/15/21/8270
AB - Background: Severe cancer-related pain remains a major clinical challenge in patients with advanced malignancies and may persist despite multimodal analgesic treatment. Objective: This study evaluated short-term clinical outcomes and complications associated with computed tomography (CT)-guided percutaneous cordotomy for severe, unilateral cancer-related pain. Design: This retrospective single-center case series included 21 patients with treatment-refractory cancer pain who underwent CT-guided cordotomy between 2019 and 2024. Pain intensity, functional status, and opioid consumption were assessed at baseline and at the standardized 1-month follow-up using the Visual Analog Scale (VAS), Karnofsky Performance Status (KPS), and daily morphine milligram equivalents (MME), respectively. Results: At 1 month, the mean VAS score decreased from 9.95 to 0.90 (p < 0.001), mean daily MME decreased from 876.00 to 205.62 mg/day (p < 0.001), and mean KPS increased from 38.10 to 69.52 (p < 0.001). No permanent or major complications were documented during the available 1-month follow-up. Conclusions: In this retrospective single-center case series, CT-guided percutaneous cordotomy was associated with marked short-term reductions in pain intensity and opioid requirements and improvement in functional status at 1 month in patients with severe, unilateral cancer pain refractory to conventional therapy. Given the small sample size, absence of a control group, and limited follow-up duration, these findings should be considered preliminary and should not be interpreted as establishing definitive efficacy or safety.
SN - 2077-0383
ER -