Assesing gender differences for non-predictable Breakthrough Cancer Pain Phenomenon: a secondary analysis from IOPS-MS Study

IOPS-MS was a big multicentric study with the aim of characterizing BTcP in a large number of patients belonging to different settings and assessing possible factors influencing its development. Moreover, NP-BTcP topic was addressed elsewhere [https://doi.org/10.3390/cancers13164018]. One key difference is related to the hormonal (gender related characteristics) differences between men and women. For example, estrogen and progesterone can affect pain sensitivity, with some studies suggesting that women may be more sensitive to pain during certain stages of the menstrual cycle. Similarly, testosterone may have analgesic effects in men, which could contribute to differences in pain sensitivity between genders.