Pain
Every day, people living with serious diseases strive to be more than their disease — to be defined by what they can dream and hope and achieve, not by what limits them. Our commitment to people with serious diseases is uncompromising and goes beyond our research and development (R&D) and medicines.
Deeply personal but extremely universal: The pain experience
Meet Ali and Cody Burton and the Rhodes family. While their stories with pain — from experiencing it firsthand, to being a caregiver, to losing a loved one during their journey — are deeply personal, they share a universal experience. Watch the videos below to learn more about their journeys with pain, pain management and recovery and what they want to share with the millions who experience acute pain each year.
Keeping the conversation going
Ali is a mother, wife and teacher. When a skiing accident resulted in a leg injury, she was determined not to let her pain change her routine and to show her children and students they can "do hard things.”
Recovering from a mayday situation
An injury can happen in a moment, but the road to recovery can be much longer. Hear from Cody how his life changed in an instant and how he managed his pain in the weeks after.
Advocating for alternatives
After losing their son to a struggle with substance use disorder after being prescribed an opioid post surgery, Kerri and Taylor began advocating for pain management alternatives.
Working with the pain community
We’re focused on researching and discovering potential medicines aimed at targeting how pain signals move in the body. Vertex seeks to identify opportunities where we can support, empower, learn from and engage with the pain community, and ensure their voices are represented and incorporated into all that we do.
Vertexians at the PAINWeek Conference 2024.
Engaging with the pain community
Throughout the year, we collaborate with organizations interested in raising awareness about pain through initiatives like the U.S. Pain Foundation’s Invisible Project publications on acute to neuropathic pain. We recognize the role caregivers play in individual experiences with pain, including supporting the Caregiver Action Network and National Family Caregiver’s Month in November. We also partner with organizations such as Shatterproof that host national events to build community among those impacted by addiction.
Examples of organizations we support include:
Learn about our work in pain
To learn more about our pain studies in the U.S., visit our clinical trials website. For information about non-U.S. sites, visit clinicaltrials.gov.
Dr. Todd Bertoch shares his perspective on pain
Learn more about Dr. Bertoch’s experience as an anesthesiologist and the unmet medical need in his area of work.
Recovering from a mayday situation: Cody Burton’s story
Firefighter Cody Burton is no stranger to how life can change in an instant. Listen as he shares how the tables turned when he was injured on the job and how he navigated the weeks of pain that followed.
Advocating for alternatives: The Rhodes family story
Kerri and Taylor Rhodes felt helpless as they watched their son struggle with substance use disorder after being prescribed an opioid to help with postoperative pain. When their daughter faced the same procedure years later, the family was determined to find a different way to manage her pain.