Washington, like the entire country, has been hit hard by fentanyl. 

So far this year, King County has recorded more than 650 overdose deaths involving the synthetic opioid, which can be 50 times stronger than heroin. 

650 is a devastating number but it’s actually down from a peak in 2023, when more than 1,000 people died from fentanyl-related overdoses in the county. The drop mirrors a downward trend that we’ve seen across the entire country… 

But the crisis is still overwhelming many communities. 

A biotech company called ARMR Sciences is hoping to solve at least one piece of this very complicated puzzle: Instead of reversing these overdoses, they want to stop them from happening in the first place... through a fentanyl vaccine. 

GUESTS:
Dr. Colin Haile, a research associate professor at the University of Houston and he’s also one of the co-founders of ARMR Sciences.

RELATED LINKS: 
A Fentanyl Vaccine Is About to Get Its First Major Test | WIRED
Scientists Create a Vaccine Against Fentanyl

Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes

Soundside is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

Washington, like the entire country, has been hit hard by fentanyl.&nbsp;
So far this year, King County has recorded more than 650<a href="https://kingcounty.gov/en/dept/dph/health-safety/medical-examiner/reports-dashboards/overdose-deaths-dashboard"> overdose deaths </a>involving the synthetic opioid, which&nbsp;can be <a href="https://www.cdc.gov/stop-overdose/caring/fentanyl-facts.html">50 times stronger than heroin</a>.&nbsp;
650 is a devastating number but it&rsquo;s actually down from a peak in 2023, when more than 1,000 people died from fentanyl-related overdoses in the county. The drop<a href="https://www.npr.org/2025/03/07/nx-s1-5295618/fentanyl-overdose-drugs"> mirrors a downward trend </a>that we&rsquo;ve seen across the entire country&hellip;&nbsp;
But the crisis is still overwhelming many communities.&nbsp;
A biotech company called ARMR Sciences is hoping to solve at least one piece of this very complicated puzzle:&nbsp;Instead of reversing these overdoses, they want to stop them from happening in the first place... through a fentanyl vaccine.&nbsp;
GUESTS:
<ul>
<li aria-level="1">Dr. Colin Haile,&nbsp;a research associate professor at the University of Houston and he&rsquo;s also one of the co-founders of ARMR Sciences.</li>
</ul>
RELATED LINKS:&nbsp;
<ul>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.wired.com/story/a-fentanyl-vaccine-is-about-to-get-its-first-major-test/?mkt_tok=NTI3LUFIUi0yNjUAAAGejZOL5L40JIAgQjcmqH8JQYrky14JSFbjl1AMnLEIZ6yMA7_lanoO5j-ii0_USQn0VDUYqjGzmk09t_87Ms-WW9G9c4HbTpBfgUL0dkLkyqfb">A Fentanyl Vaccine Is About to Get Its First Major Test | WIRED</a></li>
<li aria-level="1"><a href="https://www.smithsonianmag.com/smart-news/scientists-create-a-vaccine-against-fentanyl-180981301/">Scientists Create a Vaccine Against Fentanyl</a></li>
</ul>
Thank you to the supporters of KUOW, you help make this show possible! If you want to help out, go to&nbsp;<a href="http://kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes">kuow.org/donate/soundsidenotes</a>
Soundside&nbsp;is a production of KUOW in Seattle, a proud member of the NPR Network.

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Washington, like the entire country, has been hit hard by fentanyl. A biotech company is working on a fentanyl vaccine to tackle overdoses and addiction. 

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