If you’re a James Bond fan, you may remember the 1999 film, The World is Not Enough. The movie’s villain is a Russian terrorist named Renard who suffers from a rather unique condition. During an encounter with British agent 009, Renard gets shot in the head. However, like most bad guys in the movies, the oft-would-be kill shot doesn’t end up being a fatal blow. Renard’s doctor saves his life, but he is unable to remove the bullet, as doing so would kill the man. Eventually, the bullet will claim Renard’s life, but until that time, its presence in his medala oblong gata renders him almost senseless, dulling his ability to smell, taste and even feel pain.

Although the events leading up to Renard’s condition are unique, the inability to feel pain is not. Many people are unable to sense pain, which may sound appealing, but it can actually be very dangerous. After all, pain is one of the quickest ways our body tells us that something is wrong.

Inability to Feel Pain

The inability to feel pain is known in the medical community as congential insensitivity to pain. It is part of a larger set of disorders known as hereditary sensory and autonomic neuropathy.

As we mentioned above, it may sound cool to feel “invincible,” but it can leave you open to injury. For example, let’s say you have the condition and you set your hand on a hot stove. You’ll still suffer the burns, but you won’t realize you’re being burned. See how this could be an issue?

Interestingly, it’s the pain-free that the pain community are turning to to address the problem of chronic pain. Researchers at Cambridge University have recently pinpointed the exact gene responsible for the pain-free condition, and they’re trying to replicate its expression to help find new pain management avenues.

According to researchers, knowing the underlying mechanisms of pain sensations are critical to controlling and reducing pain, especially because some current methods are ineffective or addictive.

“We are very hopeful that this new gene could be an excellent candidate for drug development, particularly given recent successes with drugs targeting chromatin regulators in human disease,” said Dr. Ya-Chun Chen, the study’s first author.

Obviously the treatment strategy is in the beginning stages, but it’s encouraging for the future of pain management. The key here will be to find a delicate balance between helping people achieve chronic pain relief without dulling the senses so much that the individual is in danger.

Related Source: Medical Daily