Evidence
Commentary on selected new evidence
Commentary on selected new evidence
With advice from topic experts we did not select any studies for further commentary.
How we made the decision
We check our guidelines regularly to ensure they remain up to date. We based the decision on surveillance 4 years after the publication of Palliative care for adults: strong opioids for pain relief (2012) NICE guideline CG140.
For details of the process and update decisions that are available, see ensuring that published guidelines are current and accurate in 'Developing NICE guidelines: the manual'.
Previous surveillance update decisions for the guideline are on our website.
New evidence
We found 30 new studies in a search for randomised controlled trials and systematic reviews published between 27 November 2013 and 22 February 2016. We also considered 1 additional study identified by members of the guideline committee who originally worked on this guideline.
Evidence from 4 studies identified in an Evidence Update published 2 years after publication of the guideline was also considered.
From all sources, 35 studies were considered to be relevant to the guideline.
We also checked for relevant ongoing research, which will be evaluated again at the next surveillance review of the guideline.
See appendix A: summary of new evidence from surveillance and references for all new evidence considered.
Views of topic experts
We considered the views of topic experts, including those who helped to develop the guideline.
Views of stakeholders
Stakeholders commented on the decision not to update the guideline and place NICE guideline CG140 on the static list. Overall, six stakeholders commented. See appendix B for stakeholders' comments and our responses.
Five stakeholders commented on the proposal to not update the guideline: 1 agreed with the decision; 2 disagreed with the decision; and 2 noted that they had no comments on the proposals. Six stakeholders commented on the proposal to put the guideline on the static list: 2 agreed with the decision; 2 disagreed with the decision; and 2 noted that they had no comments on the proposals.
One stakeholder suggested changes to several review questions addressing the side-effects of opioids. However, surveillance includes all new evidence relevant to the scope and no evidence to address either the original or the suggested questions was identified. No new ongoing or published studies were identified by the stakeholders to support views that the guideline should be updated or that it should not be placed on the static list. Finally, extensions to the scope were suggested, but these were considered to be covered by NHS England's specialised pain commissioning service.
Overall, we decided not to update the guideline and place NICE guideline CG140 on the static list.
See ensuring that published guidelines are current and accurate in 'Developing NICE guidelines: the manual' for more details on our consultation processes.
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