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EU and UK regulators have warned fake variations of the diabetes drug Ozempic — usually used for weight reduction — have been found at wholesalers.
It follows a surge within the drug’s recognition and an absence of provides, which has prompted sufferers to show to unlawful on-line pharmacies.
The pre-filled injection pens are falsely labelled because the drug bought by the Denmark-based Novo Nordisk and had been found as fakes due to inactive serial numbers.
The pens got here from suppliers in Austria and Germany and look like 1mg doses with genuine German packaging, though it’s a completely different form and shade of blue to the originals.
The European Medicines Agency mentioned the EU medicines regulatory authorities and the police are investigating the matter and warned additional instances couldn’t be dominated out.
The German and Austrian authorities are taking motion in opposition to the wholesalers.
Demand for Ozempic has soared because it turned identified for serving to folks considerably lower their physique weight, with many sufferers utilizing it as a substitute of Wegovy, the Novo Nordisk drug with the identical energetic ingredient that’s designed to deal with weight problems.
But shortages have meant some sufferers have struggled to pay money for provides.
Dr Alison Cave, chief security officer of the UK’s Medicines Healthcare merchandise Regulatory Agency, mentioned shopping for semaglutide, the energetic substance in Ozempic and Wegovy, from illegally buying and selling on-line suppliers “significantly increases the risk of getting a product which is either falsified or not licensed for use in the UK”.
The medication had been recognized at two UK wholesalers however the MHRA mentioned they’ve all been recalled and accounted for, with none reaching UK sufferers, legit pharmacies, or healthcare professionals. The EMA additionally mentioned there was no proof that pens had been distributed from authorized pharmacies.
But Cave known as on sufferers who’re fearful concerning the security or effectiveness of their drug, or suspect it’s not a real product, to report it to the regulator.
Novo Nordisk mentioned it has seen a “significant increase” in unlawful on-line gross sales, and it investigates each counterfeit case that it’s alerted to.
The drugmaker works with a 3rd celebration that specialises in monitoring and taking down unlawful on-line gives and firms on the bottom that conduct bodily investigations to determine the perpetrators.
It mentioned it collaborates with legislation enforcement and different authorities the place related.
“Patients can protect themselves from counterfeits by only buying medicines from legitimate sources and with a prescription,” it mentioned.
