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A "Wonder" Drug's Trail Of Addiction And Death
Rodale Books
October 2003
On Sale: October 17, 2003
336 pages
ISBN: 1579546382
EAN: 9781579546380
Kindle: B00DWJ3NM8
Hardcover / e-Book
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Non-Fiction
OxyContin, a potent painkiller containing opium-derived
oxycodone as its key active ingredient, was first sold in
1996 as a treatment for cancer patients and other chronic
pain sufferers. From the start, the drug's manufacturer
aggressively marketed its patented time-release formula as a
breakthrough in the effort to reduce prescription drug
abuse. It wasn't long, however, before thrill-seeking
teenagers shattered that illusion of safety; by simply
crushing an "Oxy," they were able to tap into a high so
seductive it would come to dominate their lives. Some
patients, seeking relief from pain, also found themselves
drawn to the drug's dark side. Pain Killer takes readers on a journey of discovery that
begins with the true story of Lindsay, a high-school
cheerleader in Virginia who gets hooked on Oxys, and expands
outward to explore the critical issues of legitimate pain
management, prescription drug abuse, and how the misuse of
science by the drug industry threatens the public good. With
the fast-rising abuse of prescription drugs by young people
ringing alarm bells within government, the how and why
behind the OxyContin disaster is a gripping read not only
for parents, but also for medical professionals, community
leaders, business executives, and all those concerned with
this crisis. The dangers described in Pain Killer also reverberate far
beyond the threat from a single drug at a particular moment
in time. The focus of our government's war on drugs has
clearly misled many of us into thinking that only illegal
drugs smuggled from beyond our borders can be abused. As
Meier tells the dramatic story, some of the most deadly
substances are produced and sold legally right here at home. THE EXTRAORDINARY AND TRUE STORY OF OXYCONTIN EQUAL PARTS crime thriller, medical detective story, and
business exposé, Pain Killer takes a hard-hitting look at
how a powerful drug touted as the salvation for millions
triggered a national tragedy. At its inception, the legal
narcotic OxyContin was seen as a pharmaceutical dream, a
"wonder" drug that would herald a sea change in medical care
while reaping vast profits for its maker. It did do that;
but it also unleashed a public health crisis that cut a
swath of despair and crime through unsuspecting small towns,
suburbs, and cities across the country. As reports of
OxyContin overdoses made front-page and network news,
doctors, narcotics agents, regulators, industry executives,
and lawmakers raced in, scrambling to slow the damage.
Behind it all stood one of America's wealthiest families,
and a drug company whose relentless promotion helped fuel
the problem Written by award-winning journalist Barry Meier, whose
special report in the New York Times triggered national
interest in OxyContin, Pain Killer chronicles the rise of
the multibillion dollar pain management industry and lays
bare its excesses and abuses.
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