Warning: buying drugs online can seriously damage your health
When the old lady showed up at the A&E ward, it was too late. Doctors at Sunderland's Eye Infirmary discovered massive cataracts in both eyes, tumescent growths that had left the 64-year-old almost completely blind. Far from suffering declining health, though, her loss of vision was completely self-inflicted. The cataracts were caused by steroids, purchased from an online pharmacy in Thailand, which she'd been taking having incorrectly diagnosed herself with chronic fatigue syndrome.
This is among the most tragic examples yet of the dangers of buying medicines over the web. Not that the case has proved much of a deterrent: the online drugs market has since continued to grow and is today estimated to be worth €28bn annually. Popular web-bought drugs include Viagra and Prozac, although there is also a thriving market for Valium, Ritalin (which is used to treat ADHD, but has a transient side effect of suppressing appetite) and Provigil, a narcolepsy treatment popular both with clubbers and stressed office workers because of its reputed rejuvenating powers.
"Taking drugs bought on the internet could lead all sorts of health problems," says Darragh O'Loughlin, a Galway pharmacist, who has campaigned to raise awareness of the perils of purchasing pharmaceuticals on the web. "You really don't know what you are buying."
Drugs sold over the internet are often fake. Some are essentially harmless (in one test, counterfeit Viagra was found to be comprised mostly of cement). But others are dangerous because they will contain a small amount of active ingredient. To this can be added the risk of patient misdiagnosis, as in the case of the Sunderland woman who lost her sight.
"You could be taking the right medicine, or you could not," says O'Loughlin. "You might be taking the right strength or you might not. Even if you are lucky enough to make the correct diagnosis, there's every chance the medicine might be counterfeit. You could think you are treating a condition when in fact you aren't.
"For example, you might buy something believing it is an allergy treatment. But it may contain steroids that suppress the immune system, so that the symptoms of the allergy appear go away. Of course, you are leaving yourself open to additional health issues."
Precious little information is available on the internet drugs trade in Ireland, though anecdotally, doctors and pharmacists say it is almost certainly a growing problem. In a 2006 study, the Irish Patients' Association estimated that, taking international statistics as a baseline, between 35 and 55pc of people using the internet were looking up medical information. Furthermore, it warned that users were 'continually exposed to advertisements offering drugs and other medicinal products', although only 12pc of online pharmacies were properly accredited.
In the UK, where quantitative research has been conducted, some two million people are thought to buy drugs regularly over the internet, while Britain's Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Authority has seized more than €10m worth of illegal drugs (of which 50pc turned out to be fake).
"God forbid someone should die in Ireland from taking these substances," says Irish Patients' Association chairman Stephen McMahon. "As we have said repeatedly -- you can die from one click of your mouse."
The illicit trade in prescription medicine has the potential to undermine Ireland's huge pharmaceutical industry, which is worth tens of billions to the economy -- six of the world's top 10-selling drugs are produced in Ireland, including two of the most highly counterfeited: Lipitor and Viagra.
There are parallels between the trade in counterfeit drugs and that in pirated DVDs. Both are concentrated in territories where intellectual property laws are loosely enforced, especially China, Russia and South East Asia. And both are linked to shady cartels.
"Billions are being generated every year and the money is going to fund criminal and terrorist activity," says Stephen McMahon.
Worse still, he says, poor nations are often hoodwinked into buying fake drugs. McMahon cites a 1995 meningitis epidemic in Niger. In good faith, Nigeria donated 88,000 vaccines. The medicines were counterfeit and an estimated 2,500 died after using drugs which they thought would cure them.
Darragh O'Loughlin's advice is that if something looks like a bargain, it almost certainly isn't. "If you find them cheaper, it's probably not kosher," he says. "And bear in mind, when a criminal gang is prepared to sell fake drugs over the internet, you've got to ask yourself if you really feel comfortable handing them your credit card number."
The drugs don't work: what we're buying online
Prozac: Prozac is one of the world's most prescribed anti-depressants, with an estimated 35 million people estimated to have used it. Recently, it has been reported that clubbers are 'self-medicating' with Prozac to help them come down off ecstasy. In the UK, a number of deaths were attributed to Prozac misuse in 2003. A pack of 30 tablets costs in the region of €30 online.
Viagra: One of the industry's true 'blockbusters', Viagra is worth over €1.5bn a year to Pfizer. The price of a packet of four tablets online varies from around €70 to €15 but the tablets are often counterfeit, and made of substances such as powdered cement.
Provigil: In addition to being used to aid weight loss, Provigil is popular with clubbers as it helps them stay awake for longer. There are also reports of executives and students using it to boost awareness.
Valium: There are anecdotal reports of people using internet-bought Valium to help them sleep after taking cocaine. You can buy 30 tablets for around €45.
Ritalin: Similar to cocaine in its chemical make-up, Ritalin is licensed for ADHA, but its appetite-suppressant side effect makes it popular with those trying to lose weight.
- Ed Power
