Ed Bilsky quoted in ‘Portland Phoenix’ article about heroin
Ed Bilsky, Ph.D., vice-president of research and scholarship, was quoted in an August 26, 2015 article in the Portland Phoenix about trends in heroin use in Maine.
The article highlighted a recent $4.5 million grant from the National Institute on Drug Abuse to develop opioids with fewer adverse side effects.
In the article, Bilsky explained why these cycles of spikes in heroin doses occur every few years, stating that every few years a batch of high-purity heroin ends up on the streets, causing users to overdose unexpectedly. “Heroin is particularly challenging, because of some of its chemical properties that gets it to the brain very quickly,” Bilsky said.
He discussed his research around addiction over the past two decades. “We’ve had some successes and some failures along the way,” stated Bilsky. He said this recent grant will help scientists get closer to discovering drugs that can address the epidemic of addiction. “You have different treatment options existing, however they each have their liabilities and disadvantages.”