In November, the FDA approved Dsuvia, a drug that's said to be 10 times stronger than Fentanyl and 1000 times as potent as morphine. Luca the husky keeps Chris Linscome busy these days when he's not studying for medical school or training and coaching at the gym. "Moving my body and pushing myself in physically demanding ways was an impetus for me to be completely sober," said Linscome. Sobriety took him five years and included several relapses and getting kicked out of the Army. "That was a really scary moment for me. I feel like that was a time in my life where I was completely spiraled and out of control and didn't feel like I didn't have any willpower over this drug," he said. He had his first taste of cocaine at a party in college during his time at Columbia University. He said he used drugs as a release from his vigorous pre-med courses. Linscome was able to check himself into a program to get sober, but he relapsed several times. He joined the Army and said the training kept him sober until he got to his unit. The stress of the military pushed him and some of his friends over the edge. He says many of his friends in the military became addicted to prescribed painkillers, like opioids and morphine. He lost his best friend to the addiction. "He died from a morphine overdose that his doctor prescribed him," he said. "You're constantly pushing yourself; it's always stressful so people self-medicate, they cope." America's opioid addiction is well documented, and a new powerful painkiller will soon be circulating through hospitals. In November, the FDA approved Dsuvia, a drug that's said to be 10 times stronger than Fentanyl and 1000 times as potent as morphine. The pill is designed to treat pain in a monitored hospital setting or on the battlefield, something Public Citizen’s Health Research Group, a consumer rights advocacy group, says isn't unique to other painkillers already in the market. Disney Wolf, the founder, says the drug will add to the opioid epidemic. "It will take some deaths and near deaths after approval to wake up people to the fact that it should've never been approved in the first place," said Wolfe. The Drug Enforcement Administration released a report last week that said prescription drugs, including opioids, were responsible for most overdose deaths out of any illicit drug use since 2001. Linscome is now in medical school in Portland and is part of the National Guard. He says there are rare cases that using pharmaceutical drugs can be lifesaving, but to use for treating pain in veterans is not a good idea. "You're playing with fire when you're using really, really strong drugs, whether they're legal and FDA approved or not, it doesn't matter; they're really strong drugs and there are consequences to using them," said Linscome. The makers of Dsuvia say the drug will not be available by prescription, and is not to be used for more than 72 hours. The drug was previously approved in Europe. Source
