Different health professionals work together to help manage your pain. Some of these professionals are listed below.
They will often discuss treatment options at a multidisciplinary team (MDT) meeting. If your pain is not well controlled, you may want to ask your GP or palliative care specialist for a referral to a pain medicine specialist who is experienced in cancer pain and part of a multidisciplinary pain clinic.
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Health professionals you may see
| general practitioner (GP) | assists with treatment decisions; provides ongoing care in partnership with specialists |
| surgeon | surgically removes tumours from the body |
| radiation oncologist | treats cancer by prescribing and overseeing a course of radiation therapy |
|
medical oncologist |
treats cancer with drug therapies such as chemotherapy, targeted therapy and immunotherapy (systemic treatment) |
| palliative care specialist | treats pain and other symptoms to maximise wellbeing and improve quality of life |
| pain medicine specialist | treats all types of pain, particularly acute pain during active treatment, ongoing pain after treatment, or pain that is difficult to control |
| nurse | administers drugs and provides care, information and support |
| nurse practitioner | works in an advanced nursing role; may prescribe some medicines and tests |
| pharmacist | dispenses medicines and gives advice about dosage and side effects |
| physiotherapist | helps with restoring movement and mobility, and preventing further injury |
|
psychologist |
helps you identify the thoughts, emotions and behaviours that affect your pain; provides psychological methods of pain management |
| counsellor, social worker | help you with emotional, practical or financial issues |
Additional resources
Dr Melanie Lovell, Clinical Ass Prof, Medicine, Northern Clinical School, Sydney Medical School, University of Sydney, and Palliative Medicine Consultant Physician, Greenwich Hospital, NSW; Nathaniel Alexander, 13 11 20 Consultant, Cancer Council NSW, NSW; Anne Booms, Palliative Care Nurse Practitioner, Canberra Hospital, ACT; Dr Roger Goucke, Consultant, Department of Pain Management, Specialist Pain Medicine Physician, Sir Charles Gairdner Hospital, and Clinical Ass Prof, School of Medicine and Pharmacology, University of Western Australia, WA; John Marane, Consumer; and Dr Jane Trinca, Director, Barbara Walker Centre for Pain Management, St Vincent’s Hospital, VIC.
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