Chronic pain sufferers have been waiting for this -- a drug that relieves pain without dulling the senses or addicting the patient. And it comes from centipede venom.
"A drug which was a selective Nav1.7 blocker would be possibly a 'perfect painkiller', in that it selectively and effectively prevents the generation of pain signals from tissue, while not affecting any other nerve functions," he said.That sounds great. I hate the side effects of opiods. Yes, they kill pain momentarily but you're a wreck afterwards. As a writer who wants his skills and mental acuity available each and every day, the last thing I want to do is take morphine or other heavy drugs for pain. This could be the answer we've all been waiting for. Imagine: no pain and no side effects. It's like magic. Human trials within two years, if all goes well.
"There are individuals who are born with non-functional Nav1.7 channels and these people have a complete inability to feel pain, and no other significant problems apart from loss of smell sensation.
"Forget about using opioids to relieve pain, this drug could mean you don't have any pain to relieve. It would be totally new class of drug."
