Pregabalin sees its frequent application to ameliorate neuropathic pain. However, its efficacy to treat chronic cancer pain remains unclear. Thus a current study defined the effectiveness of pregabalin along with morphine in managing pancreatic cancer pain.

A total of 240 patients were included and prescribed morphine and 150 mg/d pregabalin. They were investigated for the average pain score, morphine dose, features of breakthrough cancer pain, functional interference concerning pain, anxiety/depression status, and occurrence of treatment-related adverse events throughout the study.

At the end of the study, both the combination therapy group (pregabalin + morphine) as well as monotherapy group (morphine) achieved similar analgesic efficacy. The combination group utilized a substantially lower mean daily dose of morphine than the monotherapy group. The modification in functional interference score related to pain was remarkably dissimilar between the two groups. Patients in the combination therapy group underwent a shorter duration of breakthrough cancer pain than in the monotherapy group. The combination group showed a higher incidence of somnolence, dizziness, and cognitive dysfunction than the monotherapy group. No severe treatment-related side effects occurred.

Thus pregabalin can be used with morphine to relieve pain in patients with pancreatic cancer.