Pain is a subjective experience. It is only the patient who knows how much it hurts, when it hurts, if treatment has any effect and for how long, and the impact on daily living and mood. The pain physician needs to foster a relationship of trust and good communication with the patient to provide satisfactory pain treatment that is experienced as a relief and is helpful to the patient. In the battle against pain, the physician requires information on the expression and severity of the pain, and also the trust and motivation of the patient.

This would imply that a patient who experiences adequate or acceptable pain relief is a management success. …

Correspondence to Professor P Hartvig Honoré, Department of Pharmacology and Pharmacotherapy, University of Copenhagen, Universitetsparken 2, Copenhagen 2100, Denmark; peh{at}farma.ku.dk