can the chemicals that people use to create the drug be as dangerous as the drug itself ?

Question: can the chemicals that people use to create the drug be as dangerous as the drug itself ?
- Keywords:
  chemical,
  dangerous,
  drug
Asked by Hazel to Roisin on 13 Nov 2016.
- Roisin Jones answered on 13 Nov 2016:
  
  Yes absolutely! It’s actually one of the big problems with making drugs (both legal and illegal), sometimes it can be quite difficult to remove the starting materials from the mixture, and these can often be biologically active too, and they may have an effect that you don’t want your drug to have: either they’re poisonous, or they affect how well your end product works, or they’re too strong and will to too much of the effect you’re looking for.

Question: can the chemicals that people use to create the drug be as dangerous as the drug itself ?