New study shows how cancer survivors develop opioid addictions

(Oxford University Press USA) Opioids play an important role in how cancer patients manage pain, but the ongoing opioid epidemic has raised concerns about their potential for abuse. A new study in the Journal of the National Cancer Institute reveals that several factors are associated with a risk for persistent opioid use, including younger age, white race, unemployment at the time of cancer diagnosis, lower median income, and current or prior tobacco use.