Christine Miaskowski, PhD, RN

Fatigue is the most common problem experienced by oncology patients.[1-2] In this issue of ONCOLOGY, Drs. Lesage and Portenoy present an excellent overview of the potential etiologies, assessment parameters, and treatment options for this complex, multidimensional symptom. As they note in their comprehensive review, research on this symptom, which has a significant impact on oncology patients’ ability to function and quality of life, is limited. Therefore, one is left to consider what important research questions need to be answered regarding cancer-related fatigue.

Children, the elderly, AIDS patients, and former narcotic drug abusers pose special problems in pain management that may lead to undermedication even more frequently than occurs in the general population of cancer patients with pain. A multidisciplinary panel of six pain experts with clinical experience in caring for these special groups met in Santa Fe, New Mexico, to discuss assessment methods and pharmacologic approaches to the treatment of pain in these patients. A summary of the roundtable discussion follows.