A randomised double blind placebo controlled trial of infusional subcutaneous octreotide in the management of malignant bowel obstruction at the end of life.

This study looks at the effectiveness of the drug octreotide in palliative care management of bowel obstruction caused by cancer in people with advanced cancer. Who is it for? You can join this study if you have widespread and advanced cancer and you have a related bowel obstruction which requires hospital admission or a change in care if you are already in hospital, but surgical removal is not currently considered appropriate. Trial details Participants will be randomly divided into two groups. One group will receive a continuous infusion of the drugs octreotide and ranitidine under the skin (subcutaneous) in addition to intravenous doses of dexamethasone and intravenous or subcutaneous fluids for 72 hours. The other group (control) will receive fluids under the skin only. Bowel obstruction is a common medical problem in people with advanced cancer. Current treatment options include combinations of surgery (where this is possible), nil by mouth, a feeding tube placed into the stomach, pain relief, and medications that reduce secretions. None of these options has been tested in a study that is large enough to determine which works best. Octreotide can inhibit the release of hormones that cause secretions into the gut that may make the pain of bowel obstruction worse. Inhibiting these secretions with Octreotide may help relieve pain and improve the quality of life.