Similar to morphine, fentanyl is a synthetic opiate used to treat patients with extreme chronic pain. Sometimes it is used for patients coming out of surgery. Street names for fentanyl include TNT, China girl, Goodfella, Murder 8, and Tango and Cash. Fentanyl is usually used when no other pain medicines work as it is extremely addictive and more powerful than other medicines such as morphine. Cancer patients who already take opioids for pain relievers may be prescribed fentanyl to help further decrease pain. Alarmingly, fentanyl is increasingly appearing as a street-drug where it is being misused for illicit purposes.
Centre for Public Safety and Criminal Justice Research
