Methadone hydrochloride

{
  "id": "MLC-T-ONC-005315",
  "term": "Methadone hydrochloride",
  "field": "Oncology and biomedicine",
  "definitions": [
    "A drug used to treat moderate to severe pain. It is also used to help people who are addicted to opioid drugs, such as heroin or prescription pain medicines. Methadone hydrochloride works by binding to opioid receptors, mainly the mu opioid receptor, in the central nervous system. This blocks pain signals and changes how the body responds to pain. It also reduces cravings and withdrawal symptoms in people with opioid use disorder. Methadone hydrochloride is a type of synthetic opioid agonist that works as an analgesic (pain reliever).",
    "The hydrochloride salt of methadone, a synthetic opioid with analgesic activity. Similar to morphine and other morphine-like agents, methadone mimics the actions of endogenous peptides at CNS opioid receptors, primarily the mu-receptor, resulting in characteristic morphine-like effects including analgesia, euphoria, sedation, respiratory depression, miosis, bradycardia and physical dependence. Because of the prolonged half-life of methadone compared to other morphine-like agents such as heroin, the onset of opiate withdrawal symptoms is slower, the duration of opiate withdrawal is prolonged, and opiate withdrawal symptoms are less severe."
  ],
  "references": [
    "NCI Dictionary of Cancer Terms",
    "National Cancer Institute Thesaurus"
  ],
  "url": "https://mlchart.com/terminology/oncology/methadone-hydrochloride/"
}