[Anti-pain effect of salmon calcitonin in bone metastases of malignant tumors with the exception of breast and prostatic carcinoma].

In 16 patients with pain caused by diffuse osteolytic or osteoplastic-osteolytic metastases, salmon calcitonin was used as pain relieving treatment. All patients were pretreated with opiate type analgesics without a satisfactory effect. In 2 patients it was possible to withdraw completely previous opiate intake. In most of the patients the analgesic effect of salmon calcitonin consisted in decrease of pain with identical or decreased intake of opiate type analgesics. In 3 patients the pain relieving treatment with salmon calcitonin completely failed. Our investigation seems to demonstrate that there is a subpopulation of patients with bone metastases, resistant to opiate type analgesics, in which salmon calcitonin can be administered as an additional useful pain relieving drug.