New Ways to Treat Chronic Pain
Chronic pain is pain that does not go away. Today, 20 to 30% of Canadians suffer from moderate to severe chronic pain, and close to 80% of medical visits are related to problems caused by pain. Of those with chronic pain, 70% experience pain that cannot be relieved by prescription medication such as morphine, mainly because of their side effects. Better understanding of the physiopathological mechanisms at the root of chronic pain is essential to relieve the suffering of millions of people awaiting effective treatment. Professor Philippe Sarret’s research program focuses on discovering new classes of non-opioid drugs that will result in more effective, customized treatment for chronic pain. This research program aims mainly to better understand how a family of membrane receptors, G-protein-coupled receptors (GPCR), work in controlling pain.