Opioids for Cancer Pain
What are opioids and how do they help pain?
Opioids are strong medicines used to treat moderate to severe pain. Some people call these medicines “narcotics,” although “opioids” is the better word. Opioids are similar to natural chemicals in your body called endorphins. They relieve pain by binding, or sticking to, opioid receptors on nerves in your brain and spinal cord.
Opioid medications include pills and liquids that you swallow, or patches that you put on your skin. In the hospital, opioids can also be given through an IV. Most opioids don’t provide instant relief because they need to travel to the brain and spinal cord where they work. After taking an opioid pill, it is first absorbed through your intestines. It is then processed by the liver and enters your bloodstream. Opioids travel through the bloodstream to get to your brain and spinal cord where they bind to opioid receptors and start relieving pain.
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