Chemotherapy Induced Pain Neuropathy, Neuropathic Pain
Conditions
Brief summary
Chemotherapy-related neuropathic pain is experienced by 30-40% of cancer patients. This pain significantly reduces the quality of life and overall well-being of patients battling cancer. Studies widely acknowledge that standardizing neuropathic pain assessment leads to improved patient outcomes. Our project, which we believe will add a different dimension to nursing care for cancer patients, aims to reduce chemotherapy-related neuropathic pain experienced by cancer patients through foot massage. The study population will consist of male and female cancer patients with chemotherapy-related neuropathic pain (VAS ≥ 4/10), over 18 years of age, who are actively undergoing treatment at the Medical Oncology Clinics of Atatürk University Research Hospital between February 1, 2026 and June 30, 2026, and who are not scheduled for surgical procedures during the research period. Accordingly, the minimum number of participants required for the study has been determined as 52. To reduce the risk of possible losses, withdrawals, or missing data during the research process, it is planned to include more participants than the calculated sample size. Within the scope of the research, the Neuropathic Pain Scale (S-LANSS) will be used to determine the presence of neuropathic pain in patients, and the VAS will be used to determine the severity of the pain. After the pre-test is completed, the control group will continue with routine treatment and care in the clinic. The intervention group will receive routine treatment and care, as well as foot massage using a foot massage roller for a total of 30 minutes twice a day. This intervention in the intervention group is planned to continue for 3 weeks. During this period, no other treatment will be applied to patients for neuropathic pain. The fact that only 3 small-scale studies, including one case report, were found in the literature review on this subject, the multidisciplinary collaboration in planning this study, and the expectation that it will offer practical solutions for chemotherapy-related neuropathic pain highlight the originality of the study. It is expected that the results obtained will provide evidence-based contributions to nursing care, support holistic approaches to improving patient comfort, and develop a viable intervention model for healthcare professionals.
Interventions
OTHERRoller Massage
intervention group
OTHERIce therapy
control group
Sponsors
Ataturk University
Study design
Allocation
RANDOMIZED
Intervention model
PARALLEL
Primary purpose
SUPPORTIVE_CARE
Masking
SINGLE (Outcomes Assessor)
Eligibility
Sex/Gender
ALL
Age
18 Years to 80 Years
Healthy volunteers
No
Inclusion criteria
(1) age ≥18, (2) receiving neurotoxic chemotherapy regimens including Taxanes (Paclitaxel/Docetaxel), Platinum (Carboplatin/Cisplatin), or a combination of both, (3) Having completed at least three cycles of chemotherapy, (4) scoring ≥ 12 on the S-LANSS scale, and ≥ 4 on the VAS, (5) being conscious, cooperative, and able to communicate in Turkish (6) volunteering to participate and providing written informed consent.
Exclusion criteria
(1) peripheral neuropathy pre-dating the chemotherapy (e.g., diabetic, alcoholic, or nutritional neuropathy) (2) receiving non-taxane/non-platinum regimens or Oxaliplatin-based chemotherapy, (3) active skin infections, open wounds, or severe scar tissue on the feet, (4) history of deep vein thrombosis or active bone/spine metastases in the lower extremities, (5) comorbidities affecting the sensory function of the nervous system.
Design outcomes
Primary
| Measure | Time frame | Description |
|---|---|---|
| Visual Analog Scale- Pain score | 3 weeks | The Visual Analogue Scale (VAS), developed by Price et al. (1983), was utilized to assess and monitor pain intensity; it is a simple, repeatable, and widely used subjective method for rapid pain assessment \[24\]. In this method, participants marke their perceived pain on a 10 cm ruler, where 0 represent "no pain", and 10 represent 'the most severe or imaginable pain". In this study, pain intensity was categorized as 4 for "mild pain", 5-6 for "moderate pain", and 7-10 for "severe pain". |
Countries
Turkey (Türkiye)
Outcome results
None listed