Eve,

No doubt, your mother is in the worst position in your father's battle. There is little she can do to make him do anything. I never understood someone wanting to endure pain but that might just be my low tolerance and having a pharmacist dad for (almost) 50 years. Too much pain can weigh on the mind and the body in the worst ways and has a cumulative effect to boot. The stress from pain can also slow down the healing process. On the other hand, morphine can push you deeper into depression. As Gary suggests, get the medical team into the loop. Everyone will benefit.

I had about twice as much of the Duragesic patches as Gary (2 75 mg). My throat was a red, raw, bloody mess and I could not swallow for many months. I just wanted to kick back and weather the storm but it wasn't that easy.

Call in the medical team, they will be trained to help guide him in less suffering.

Ed