Pubdate: Sun, 09 May 1999
Source: Sunday Telegraph (Australia)
Contact:  Sarah Blake

ADDICT ROBBED OF HER NEW LIFE

A Sydney woman has died within hours of undergoing rapid detoxification from
a heroin addiction using the controversial drug Naltrexone.

Larissa Hawkins, 31, was the first person in Australia to die so soon after
taking the treatment and only the second in the world.

A spokesman from the Centre for Investigation and Treatment of Addiction
(CITA) confirmed that Ms Hawkins had died from a heart attack less than 24
hours after receiving the $10,000 treatment on January 18.

Police are preparing a coroner's report over the death of Ms Hawkins at
Brisbane Waters Private Hospital while the hospital immediately suspended
the program which had already treatment 40 drug users.

Rapid detoxification using Naltrexone has been hailed a miracle cure for
heroin addiction after Israeli doctors pioneered the procedure with users
going to sleep addicted and waking up "cured".

Naltrexone works by blocking the opiate receptors in the brain, so even if
heroin is taken no effect is felt.

But the largely untested procedure has been labelled dangerous because
patients are put under a general anaesthetic, and private clinics have been
criticised for charging high prices.

Ms Hawkins mother, Beverly Lynel, sad her daughter had saved the $10,000 she
paid for the treatment in order to buy a house but decided to try rapid
detox after battling a heroin addiction for 15 years.

"She started taking drugs when she was 16, I'm not sure what starter her, I
think she just got herself mixed up with the wrong crowd". said Mrs Lynel,
of Werrington County in Sydney's west.

"But the marriage between her father and I had started to break up at the at
point and she took that very hard".

Ms Hawkins had tried for many years to give up heroin, spending the last
part of her life on a morphine program with her de-facto, Philip.

Her father, Max Hawkins, who runs a hotel in rural Victoria, said she had
told him that if the Naltrexone did not work she felt she would die.

"She was very hopeful, she felt as though it would all be over after she
paid the money and did the treatment". he said.

Ross Colquhoun, clinical director of CITA, said Ms Hawkins was one of four
patients undergoing the Naltrexone treatment at the Central Coast Hospital
when she died and on of 10,000 who have had the procedure worldwide.

"She was sitting up having a cup of tea with her boyfriend in the morning
after the procedure after having a restless night" said Mr Colquhoun.

"She was talking to staff about how her parents were on their way to pick
her up and she was confident about the future.

"But at one point a nurse returned to her room and found that she had no
pulse.  It turned out she had gone into cardiac arrest and she could not be
revived".

Ms Hawkins' parents said their daughter was "beautiful person" who had
battled hard against the addiction.

"She was the kindest girl, the loveliest girl" said Mrs Lynel.

"She had a big problem with she truly felt that it was a all going to be
behind her and she could start again.

"We just want some answers as to why she has gone".

Mr Colquhoun and the chief executive officer of Brisbane Waters Private
Hospital said Ms Hawkins had undergone rigorous testing before the
procedure.

"She had full medical tests, with pathology and numerous second opinions so
we understood her to be of good health," said Mr Colquhoun.

"That said, this group (heroin users) have often had a fairly difficult
history of drug abuse, and that has been known to damage or weaken their
bodies".

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