Opioid use among prostate cancer patients with bone metastases.

278 Background: Bone metastases (mets) occur in ≥90% of men with castrate-resistant prostate cancer (PC), causing significant pain and resource use. Opioids are frequently used in managing pain throughout the course of care, but few studies have quantified the incremental use of opioids after the onset of bone mets. This study describes treatment patterns and incremental use of opioids among PC patients diagnosed with bone mets. Methods: Prostate cancer patients (ICD9=185.xx or 233.4) newly diagnosed with bone mets (ICD9=198.5) from 2006-2012 were identified from MarketScan databases. Patients were required to be ≥40 years, continuously eligible for medical and pharmacy benefits ≥12 months pre and ≥6 months postdiagnosis, and without evidence of other primary cancers during the study period. Patients were initially categorized as non-users of opioids (<10 days use), short-term users (≥10 but <60 days use), or long-term users (≥60 days use), and further by presence of skeletal-related events (SREs). Type o...