CHARLOTTE, N.C. — Health officials across the Southeast are raising alarms about a new synthetic opioid.
The drug, known as cychlorphine, is believed to be far more potent than fentanyl, which already drives overdose deaths nationwide.
Authorities have detected it in several states, including South Carolina, Florida, Kentucky, Oklahoma, and West Virginia, and have linked it to deaths in eastern Tennessee.
For Gwyn Brown, the threat of synthetic opioids is deeply personal.
What You Need To Know
Cychlorphine is a synthetic opioid believed to be about 10 times stronger than fentanyl.
It has been connected to overdoses in multiple states, including Tennessee and South Carolina.
Experts warn that reversing an overdose may require multiple doses of Narcan.
Families affected by fentanyl are speaking out to raise awareness and prevent further deaths.
“I received a call on Saturday, July 1 of 2023 that my son was dead, and I refused to believe what I was being told. I said, ‘No he’s at a friend’s house. He’s spending the night,’” Brown said.
Brown said her son, Laird, died from a fentanyl overdose.
“I miss him every day. It’s the worst kind of pain. And I don’t want that to happen to any other family. It is preventable. And the things that we can do are all education. And the more that we know as parents, the more that we have access to. That’s how we prevent this. We talk about it,” she said.
She is now speaking out as concern grows over cychlorphine, which experts say could be even more dangerous.
“Fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine. Cychlorphine is 10 times stronger than fentanyl. So cychlorphine is 500 to 1,000 times more potent than morphine. The margin of error for cychlorphine is infinitesimal. There is no margin of error,” Brown said.
Local treatment providers are also raising concerns.
In a statement, the Dilworth Center said: “Dilworth Center continues to see significant numbers of our patients having taken synthetic opioids. Fentanyl is a known problem that we have been dealing with for years. Cychorphine, it’s one of the newer synthetic opioids available in the black market. The concern is that this drug is approximately 10 times stronger than fentanyl. We’re already seeing overdoses in Tennessee, in South Carolina. If an overdose is suspected call emergency services immediately and administer naloxone. Because of the drug’s extreme potency multiple doses of naloxone may be required.”
“And if you get just a little bit too much, you’re dead. My son died from half a pill,” Brown said.
Officials say the drug is being produced and mixed with other substances before being sold illegally. Due to its strength, it may require more naloxone, commonly known as Narcan, to reverse an overdose.
Laird’s sister, Bea Ramirez, expressed concern about how easily drugs circulate, especially among young people.
“When I went to public school, it was horrible. In class, in the bathroom, during lunch. Anywhere you go, there’s going to be at least four people in a classroom at a time that have drugs on them,” Ramirez said.
Although cychlorphine was not responsible for Laird’s death, his family says the dangers of synthetic opioids continue to grow.
“Just one bad decision is enough to kill anybody, and no one realizes how life threatening that can be. All these drugs, they’re unpredictable, and they’re potent, and you just can’t assume any more because it’s not an ‘if”… it’s a ‘when,'” Ramirez said.
Brown now urges families to take steps that could save lives.
“Carry Narcan. It’s counterintuitive to let your kids carry Narcan and tell them not to do drugs, but you’ve got to do it because alive is the goal. And having a dead child is not worth it,” Brown said.
In Mecklenburg County, officials report a 200% increase in overdose deaths since 2019, largely tied to counterfeit pills and fentanyl.
While details about cychlorphine remain limited, experts emphasize that naloxone can reverse opioid overdoses. Free naloxone is available through the Mecklenburg County Public Health Department.
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