The Impact of CT-Guided Cordotomy on Severe Cancer Pain
Year: 2026
Type: article
Study design: Observational Study
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.
Source: Journal of Clinical Medicine
DOI: 10.3390/jcm15218270
Institution: Akdeniz University
Language: English
Subfield: Anesthesiology and Pain Medicine
Field: Medicine
Domain: Health Sciences
Open Access status: gold
Estimated APC paid: $3,137
OpenAlex ID: W7223875400