Pain with NSCL cancer… malignant pleural effusion

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saltmom
saltmom Member Posts: 1 Member
edited November 2023 in Lung Cancer #1

I’m wondering if there’s some tips how to care for someone with severe pain from malignant pleural effusions. My uncle is taking MS Contin 30mg bid, dilaudid 2-6mg PRN and Ativan PRN… nothing seems to take the pain away… we just added the Ativan and it helps but sedates…. Also he can only sleep upright… any pain or chair recommendations would be greatly appreciated. Thank you!!!

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  • 3hearts
    3hearts Member Posts: 10 Member
    #2
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    Has he tried oxycodone for the pain?

  • lisaozzzz
    lisaozzzz Member Posts: 1 Member
    #3
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    Drain, drain and drain that fluid. We were taking my dad in to the hospital to have it drained at first, horribly painful procedure. So with my dad the first thing to keep the pain at bay was to have them put a tunnel cath put in so we could drain him at home. The chemo regime has helped a lot to stop the fluid from building up at this point. It worked like a charm for his pain. Have to take special care of it but the pain being gone is worth it and you can request home health with his Dr to do the draining. 🤞🤞it works for your uncle.

  • smc1
    smc1 Member Posts: 2 Member
    #4
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    I have a malignant Pleural Effusion currently. Mine caused a lot of pain and makes sleeping difficult as you have mentioned. I recently had a Pleurx catheter put in and it has made things much better. During the surgery, the doctor was able to remove a lot of fluid meaning more than was possible with the outpatient drainage (Thoracentesis). After the surgery I have drained it myself twice. This provides quick relief without the stress and complication of trying to schedule as an outpatient procedure. I will say the pain has gone down significantly (not 100%) and my sleep is slowly improving.

    Originally I could only sleep upright. In a chair or with foam wedge pillows (amazon). Eventually I found I could sleep in two other positions. On my stomach and on the same side as the effusion. Having three options made a big difference. You may see if any other position works. I tried many that did not.

    Not much helped the pain while there was a lot of fluid present. After each outpatient drainage procedure the pain was reduced and the pain meds worked better. With the catheter I can drain smaller amounts every couple days. Now with pain meds I can sleep soundly for 3-4 hours and then cobble together the rest of the night in other positions. This still makes for a rough night but it is an improvement.

    My understanding is that the chemo treatments will slow the fluid production. I have only had one round of chemo but already feel the pressure build up is slower. Combining this with the catheter gives a huge mental/emotional boost that was definitely needed on my side.

    Best wishes with your Uncle!!

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