PCP Drug Test
Updated October 14, 2026
PCP, also called angel dust, is a dissociative drug that can be smoked, swallowed, or found laced into other substances.
The PCP panel is one of the 14 on every Testr urine drug test, read on site by a certified collector at your door anywhere in the Los Angeles area. On a Testr report it is printed as PCP (Phencyclidine).
How long does PCP stay in your system?
That range is typical rather than a guarantee: how much was taken, how often, body weight and hydration all move it.
The screening cutoff above is the level at or above which the on-site cassette reads positive. Below it the panel reads negative even when a trace is present, which is why the cutoff matters as much as the number of days.
Can a prescription cause a positive on the PCP panel?
No prescription contains PCP: it has no accepted medical use in the United States, so a valid prescription does not explain a positive. A few common medicines, among them dextromethorphan in cough remedies, venlafaxine and tramadol, are documented to cross-react on PCP screens. Lab confirmation reports the compound actually present, and every laboratory report goes to a Medical Review Officer (MRO), a physician who reviews laboratory-confirmed results and accounts for valid prescriptions before the report is released.
What does a positive on the PCP drug test panel mean?
The on-site read is a drug screen. It reports positive or negative against the screening cutoff, not a measured level. Laboratory confirmation is what produces a number: a CAP-accredited laboratory quantifies the specimen by LC-MS/MS and reports measured levels, in about 72 hours. Every laboratory report goes to a Medical Review Officer (MRO), a physician who reviews laboratory-confirmed results and accounts for valid prescriptions before the report is released. Confirmation can be added when you book, or from the app within 2 hours of collection, while the specimen is still viable.
Angel dust, wet and the PCP panel
PCP has carried street names for decades: angel dust for the powder, and wet or sherm for cigarettes or joints dipped in liquid PCP. It can be smoked, swallowed or laced into other substances, sometimes without the person knowing. However it was taken, the panel reads phencyclidine itself at 25 ng/mL, a lower cutoff than most on the cassette; only the fentanyl and buprenorphine lines screen lower.
One of the original five
PCP is one of the five drugs on a standard 5-panel test, along with amphetamines, cocaine, THC and opiates, and 10-panel cups keep it. It is also a panel with documented cross-reactions, set out in the prescription answer above, which is why a presumptive positive on this line is a reason to order laboratory confirmation rather than a conclusion. Because PCP is sometimes laced into cannabis, a THC positive and a PCP positive from one specimen are two separate lines, each read on its own.
What the laboratory measures for PCP
Laboratory confirmation measures phencyclidine at 10 ng/mL, below the 25 ng/mL screening cutoff, and its menu names several cross-reacting medicines in their own right: dextromethorphan and its breakdown product dextrorphan at 10 ng/mL each, and tramadol at 50 ng/mL. A laboratory report can therefore show a measured PCP level, or none, next to a measured level of a cross-reacting medicine. Ketamine, a related dissociative drug, has no panel on the cassette; the laboratory lists ketamine and norketamine at 10 ng/mL each.
What a PCP line cannot tell you
A presumptive positive PCP line cannot say whether phencyclidine or a cross-reacting medicine reached the strip, or how the PCP was taken. Because PCP is usually detectable in urine for about a week after occasional use, and considerably longer with heavy use, a positive cannot place the use on a particular day either. Laboratory confirmation answers the first question with measured levels, and the collection date on the chain-of-custody record anchors the rest.
What PCP means on the report
What does PCP mean on a drug test?
PCP stands for phencyclidine. On a Testr report, and on most test cups, this panel is printed as PCP. On a Testr screen the PCP panel reads positive at or above 25 ng/mL, and it is usually detectable in urine for about a week after occasional use, and considerably longer with heavy use.
What is the PCP cutoff on a drug test?
25 ng/mL on a Testr screen: at or above that level the PCP panel reads positive, below it negative. Other cups can print PCP with a different cutoff. Laboratory confirmation applies its own cutoff to each compound it measures and reports the measured level rather than a positive or negative.
Every code on the cassette, with its cutoff and detection window, is on one page: drug test abbreviations, decoded.
More questions about PCP
Is PCP on a 5-panel drug test?
Yes. PCP is one of the five drugs on a standard 5-panel, with amphetamines, cocaine, THC and opiates, and it is one of the 14 panels on every Testr visit.
Can PCP show up if it was laced into something else?
Yes. PCP is sometimes laced into cannabis or other drugs, and the panel reads phencyclidine itself at 25 ng/mL however it was taken. A THC positive and a PCP positive from the same specimen are two separate lines on the report.
Does ketamine show up on the PCP panel?
Testr does not claim it does. Ketamine is a related dissociative drug, but it has no panel on the 14-panel cassette. The laboratory confirmation menu lists ketamine and norketamine, so they are reported only when laboratory confirmation is ordered.
Can dextromethorphan cause a positive PCP test?
It is one of the medicines documented to cross-react on PCP screens. Dextromethorphan, the cough suppressant in many cold remedies, is on the laboratory confirmation menu with its breakdown product dextrorphan, at 10 ng/mL each, so a laboratory report can name it next to a measured PCP level, or next to none.
Does venlafaxine cause a false positive for PCP?
Venlafaxine, the antidepressant sold as Effexor, is one of the medicines documented to cross-react on PCP screens. It is not on the laboratory confirmation menu, so a laboratory report does not measure venlafaxine itself; it reports the measured PCP level, or that none was found.
What is angel dust on a drug test?
Angel dust is a street name for PCP, phencyclidine. It reads on the PCP panel at 25 ng/mL, and laboratory confirmation measures phencyclidine at 10 ng/mL.
How the Testr drug test screens for it
This panel is part of every Testr drug test. A certified collector handles the urine collection at your home, checks specimen temperature, and reads a clinical 14-panel drug screen cassette on the spot. For measured levels rather than a positive/negative read, add laboratory confirmation: a CAP-accredited lab quantifies the result by LC-MS/MS, with measured levels on the report. Testr covers the Los Angeles area seven days a week, 7 AM to 7 PM, with the earliest window 3 hours after you book.