• Targeted Drug Delivery FOr Cancer Pain

Benefits of Targeted Drug Delivery

  • Fewer side effects
  • Better pain control
  • Fewer inpatient visits
  • Fewer total inpatient days
  • Fewer emergency room visits
  • Cost savings

If you or one of your loved ones suffers from acute or chronic pain,
please do not hesitate to call us. We can help!

(210) 692-0101

Dr. Ellis

Dr. Ellis has been a practicing Pain Management physician and anesthesiologist for over 30 years. As a cancer survivor, Dr. Ellis has a special appreciation of the suffering and difficulties produced by chronic pain and illness.

  • Dr. Ellis authored 5 articles for San Antonio Medicine magazine about his cancer treatment and how family and friends helped him during his illness. You can read about his journey at www.meandmydoctor.com.

All of our physicians are highly trained in treating cancer pain

Cancer Pain Initiative

Having cancer is a great burden. Having cancer with severe pain is overwhelming. Oncologists do a great job of managing their cancer patients including their pain. Sometimes the pain overwhelms the powerful pain medications used for pain relief. When this happens, the physicians and staff of River City Pain Management can help.

There are several options available for pain control when oral pain medication is no longer effective. All River City physicians are skilled in nerve blocks that help control certain types of pain associated with cancer. These include traditional nerve blocks used in the operating room as well as specialized techniques such as celiac plexus block for control of pain due to pancreatic cancer and other abdominal tumors. Severe nerve pain is sometimes treatable with specialized techniques such as spinal stimulation or procedures to destroy the pain causing nerves.

Our physicians have extensive experience in managing cancer patients with spinal medication delivered by specialized pumps implanted in the body. Spinal medications have the advantage of delivering superior pain relief with fewer side effects. Our physicians pride themselves on being able to help patients who are unable to leave the hospital because of their pain and return them to better function, living in their own homes. Individuals who cannot get pain relief with oral pain medication or find the side effects of those medicines intolerable are ideal candidates for spinal pain medication. The pumps are inserted underneath the skin and are not visible when people wear normal clothing. Refills of the pump are done in the office, and in some circumstances specialized nurses are dispatched to homes for pump refills. Please ask us for one of the specialized handouts and informational DVD available for this therapy.

Treating cancer pain is one of the areas of special pride for the staff of River City Pain Management. As a cancer survivor, Dr. Ellis has a special appreciation for the challenges faced by cancer patients and their families. Please give us a chance to help you during this difficult time.

Intrathecal Drug Pump

Pain relief through spinal drug delivery systems, also called intrathecal drug delivery systems, involves implanting a small pump that delivers medication directly to the spinal cord, where pain signals travel. In many cases, spinal drug delivery systems are used to treat people who have cancer pain or chronic pain. Spinal drug delivery systems increase pain relief and comfort for people with severe pain with less medicine. In addition, the system can cause fewer side effects than oral medications because less medicine is required to control pain. People who have extreme pain can improve their quality of life and become more involved in daily activities with the help of the systems. The drug pump delivers pain medication directly to the fluid around the spinal cord, in an area called the intrathecal space. The drug pump is connected to a thin, flexible tube called a catheter. Both the pump and the catheter are fully implanted under the skin. Because the pump releases medication directly to the pain receptors near the spine instead of going through your circulatory system, pain relief can be achieved with a small fraction of the oral medication dose. Studies have also reported that drug delivery therapy provided pain relief in many patients who could not achieve adequate control even with high doses of oral pain medications. Realistic expectations are essential to satisfaction with any pain treatment. Drug delivery therapy cannot eliminate the source of your pain or cure any underlying disease, but it may help you to better manage your pain.

Drug delivery therapy offers several advantages over other therapies for chronic pain.

  • A screening test serves as a temporary evaluation period so you can see if drug delivery therapy relieves your pain before committing to long-term therapy;
  • It does not have to be a permanent procedure like back surgery. The system can be turned off or surgically removed;
  • Unlike oral medications, drug delivery therapy releases medication directly into the fluid surrounding your spinal cord rather than traveling throughout your body in your bloodstream. This may lead to fewer side effects, such as nausea and constipation;
  • Drug delivery therapy may provide relief when other treatments - like medications or injections - have not.