Causes and risk factors of cancer pain

The most common cause of pain from persistent cancer is bone pain involving a metastasic or primary bone tumor. Bone pain that intensifies suddenly indicates a pathological fracture of the bone or a tumor penetrating a nearby nerve building.

Another common cause is nerve injury due to surgery, chemotherapy or radiotherapy, or when tumor cells penetrate nerve tissue. Infection with the herpes zoster virus is more common in cancer patients.