Pubdate: Thu, 13 Feb 2014
Source: Boston Globe (MA)
Copyright: 2014 Globe Newspaper Company
Contact: http://services.bostonglobe.com/news/opeds/letter.aspx?id=6340
Website: http://bostonglobe.com/
Details: http://www.mapinc.org/media/52
Author: Cindy Steinberg

ADDICTION IS AWFUL, BUT OPIATES CAN ALSO DO GOOD

As I read Kevin Cullen's column "Addiction is the quiet killer on our 
streets" (Metro, Feb. 11), I am reminded how sad and heartbreaking 
the consequences of addiction can be. But the column seems to depict 
everyone who takes prescription opioids to manage pain as addicts. It 
only tells one side of the story.

Most studies show that fewer than 4 percent of people who take the 
medications for pain control become addicted. The statement "Carrie 
Ann Walton came to be an addict in a sad but shockingly common way" 
is actually not common, and does great harm to people struggling with 
cancer, diabetic neuropathy, arthritis, migraine, severe back pain, 
carpal tunnel, sickle cell, RSD, shingles and many other painful 
chronic conditions.

Statements like this have led to a climate where doctors are now 
afraid to prescribe medications and pharmacists are afraid to 
dispense them for chronic pain sufferers who have been taking them 
successfully and responsibly for years.

Opioids do not help everyone with pain, but they are an important 
treatment option for many. These people deserve empathy, 
understanding, and to have the full story told.

Cindy Steinberg

Lexington

The writer is national director of policy and advocacy for the US 
Pain Foundation.
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