Amy, I used those patches for the extreme burn pain at end of treatment and did not have ANY side effects. I was awake and active every day that I was using them, and when I no longer needed them, just stopped and had no withdrawal. As far as I am concerned, Fentanyl is a wonder drug with no downside, and if I ever have serious pain again, I will ask -- no, I will DEMAND it.

Go for it. I will bet that after it kicks in, which I think is about 24 hours, if I remember correctly, John will feel great relief. It did such a good job for me that I didn't need anything for breakthrough pain. My neck was raw and bleeding and oozing and the docs cringed to look at it, and I felt NO pain.