MASCC has collaborated with the American Society of Clinical Oncology (ASCO), American Academy of Hospice and Palliative Medicine (AAHPM), Hospice and Palliative Nurses Association (HPNA), and Network Italiano Cure di Supporto in Oncologia (NICSO) to release new guidelines on opioid conversion in adults with cancer.
Authored by Millar P. Davis and colleagues, these guidelines aim to standardize and improve the safety and efficacy of opioid conversion in people with cancer. The recommendations address three main topics: pre-conversion assessments, strategies for conversion, and post-conversion assessments. The goal is to reduce the relative risk of overdosing or under-dosing opioids when converting from one opioid to another or converting administration routes. The strength of the evidence from the trials is modest, and there are large clinical practice and research gaps. The panel hopes this guideline will establish an international best practice baseline that can be built upon by new research and better-designed trials.
