Pain killing drugs
There was never any lack of understanding amongst the physicians regarding the usefulness of this particular drug oral morphine in treating severe pain. This is particularly true and more useful for cancer patients of whom many are at the terminal stage of their life. It is cheap, affordable and essential drug recommended by World Health Organization (WHO) and International Narcotic Control Board (INCB) for cancer pain. Granted that opioids, the substances from Poppy plant which includes morphine also, are looked upon with scorn due to their addictive nature, but as a medication, these may provide a window of respite, a pain free existence and peaceful exit from life.
Generalists may feel that there are some 'trip wires' in the management of cancer patients especially when there is issue of prescribing narcotic drugs. The drug control board recognizes these 'trip wires' with the fear of spreading addictive drugs nationwide. But it is important to know that addiction involving oral morphine is non-existent for the patient and abuse of the oral form has never become an issue anywhere in the world if the dispensing mechanism is correctly monitored.
There also remains a wrong belief that morphine is only used as "comfort for the dying" and as a "last resort" rather than seeing them as legitimate pain killers that can improve the quality of life. It is also common for people who are trapped between their concern about addiction and their desire to relieve pain to say “So what if they are addicted, they are going to die anyway”. This putatively humanitarian approach is entirely inappropriate because it perpetuates a faulty definition of addiction; it unjustly labels the pain patient as an addict and in any case will probably not result in adequate pain relief because of uncorrected knowledge about addiction.
Relief from pain is an act of extreme mercy. If we are to extend this to cancer patients in the country, let it be done freely to all so that “the quality of mercy is not strained.” It is not an impossible task.
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