this post was submitted on 02 Feb 2025
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Science

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US drug agency approves potent painkiller — the first non-opioid in decades (www.nature.com)
submitted 1 month ago by alyaza@beehaw.org to c/science@beehaw.org
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Now, millions more people will soon have access to this painkiller — a drug called suzetrigine that works by selectively blocking sodium channels on pain-sensing nerve cells and delivers opioid-level pain suppression without the risks of addiction, sedation or overdose. On Thursday, the US Food and Drug Administration approved suzetrigine for short-term pain management, making it the first pain drug given a regulatory nod in more than 20 years that works through a brand-new mechanism.

"This is a big step forward," says Stephen Waxman, a neuroscientist at the Yale School of Medicine in New Haven, Connecticut.

"Anything we can add to the toolbox that will allow us to reduce opioid dependency is a significant positive," says Paul White, an anaesthesiologist at the Cedars-Sinai Medical Center in Los Angeles, California, who was involved in suzetrigine's development.

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[–] aramis87@fedia.io 12 points 1 month ago

without the risks of addiction

Didn't the drug companies say opioids weren't addictive? I guess we're up for round 2 ....

Edit: from the company's press release:

Vertex has established a wholesale acquisition cost for JOURNAVX in the United States of $15.50 per 50mg pill.

That's the wholesale price. Consumer price will be higher.

The prescribing information sheet says to start with 100mg, then take 50mg every 12 hours. So at wholesale costs, a two-week supply is $450; actual patient costs will be higher. Also, I limited my math to only two weeks because:

Use JOURNAVX for the shortest duration, consistent with individual patient treatment goals. Use of JOURNAVX for the treatment of acute pain has not been studied beyond 14 days.