Why fentanyl could become the UK's most dangerous drug

The painkiller and anaesthetic is 50 times more potent than morphine, is powerfully addictive, fatal even in tiny amounts, and has become a huge part of America's opioid crisis

Fentanyl is starting to hit the headlines in the UK. The drug is not so well-known this side of the Atlantic but, if experiences in America are anything to go by, that will change. Sadly, fentanyl is a problem that is unlikely to be going away.

Fentanyl is a powerful pain-relieving drug, 50 times more potent than morphine, and was originally synthesised by Belgian chemist Paul Jannsen. The drug has medical applications, for example, in anaesthesia and relieving pain from major surgery or cancer.