Edward W. Boyer, PhD, MD
Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine
Director of Toxicology
Director, Toxicology Fellowship
Interim Director of Research
Dr. Boyer is an Associate Professor of Emergency Medicine at the University of Massachusetts Medical School Department of Emergency Medicine. He is the director of Toxicology and the Toxicology Fellowship in the Department of Emergency Medicine. Dr. Boyer is a graduate of the Fellowship in Toxicology and Clinical Pharmacology at the Children's Hospital in Boston, MA. He is a graduate of the Emergency Medicine Residency of the University of Pennsylvania and received his MD from Columbia University School of Medicine. He also has a PhD in synthetic organic chemistry from Columbia University. He was a NIH postdoctoral fellow in protein design at The Rockefeller University.
Currently Dr Boyer is Principal Investigator on two NIH-funded investigations into the relationship between pharmacology and HIV risk behaviors, as well as examining the impact of health systems on Internet pharmacy use.
How to contact
Department of Emergency Medicine
University of Massachusetts Medical School
55 Lake Avenue North
Worcester, MA 01655
USATelephone: (508) 421-1400
FAX: (508)421-1490
To send e-mail, click here.
Project Selene
Chronic pain from a variety of health conditions is very common; for many people suffering disabling conditions, opioid analgesics are a necessary treatment since this class of drugs is among the most powerful therapies for most forms of pain. However, long-term opioid treatment, particularly in the setting of chronic pain, can produce negative health consequences such as opioid tolerance, dependence, withdrawal, and intoxication. This has created a difficult situation for health care providers who consider using opioids analgesics to treat their patients for pain. Furthermore, restrictions placed upon physicians who attempt to adequately treat legitimate pain have led some patients to seek opioid analgesics from alternate sources, such as Internet pharmacies. The purpose of this research survey is to determine the characteristics of individuals who purchase opioid analgesics from Internet pharmacies to treat chronic pain, as well as to compare differences in opioid knowledge, attitudes, beliefs, and practices among patients with chronic pain. Furthermore, this study will determine the feasibility of conducting serial surveys in a population who purchases opioid analgesics from Internet pharmacy services. Data from this survey may be used to develop treatments for patients with chronic pain, and will hopefully minimize tolerance, dependence, and withdrawal from this important drug class. This study also furthers the important goals of the NIH Roadmap by creating new organizational models for behavioral science, arranging online partnerships of research between academic investigators and an organized online community of chronic pain patients. Participants who complete the survey will be compensated for their time. This research study is IRB approved, H-12211.