Co-proxamol
Posted: Mon 31 January, 2005 Filed under: Health 868 Comments »Interesting to see today that the painkiller co-proxamol is to be scrapped. Apparently it’s been linked with up to 400 deaths per year and a study found it was the second biggest method of drug-related suicide in the UK, accounting for almost one in five deaths.
I’ve used co-proxamol before, and I can see why it’s easy to overdose on, either intentionally or accidentally. It’s a seriously heavy gun in the world of painkillers, and while it’s sad to see something so effective be withdrawn from the market, I can understand the reasons why it’s necessary to do so.
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Of the 1,700,000 there may only be one pain wracked person who commits suicide because they have no effective analgesia. It only takes one. Then the dossier goes up to the Metropolitan Police with a formal complaint alleging negligence and criminality. MHRA Towers can then expect an independent investigation, other than nepotistic pharmaceutical colleagues having a quiet gin and tonic behind closed doors to settle minor irritants.
Be in no doubt the MHRA have caused untold misery by their incompetence. Whether that extends to deaths is another matter. The seriousness of which the MHRA are in, and now it appears their buddies at the EMEA are about join alongside has been underestimated.
My personal view echoes the MP Expense Scandal.
Many (though not all) of these civil servants live in their own dream world divorced from the real world the rest of us inhabit. The acres of media print that the greed driven out of touch MP’s illustrated this in multicoloured splendour, and no one died.
Not sure how this will play out, but when the media discover patients left to live and die in untreated pain because of MHRA incompetence, then a long overdue reckoning should take place.
The irony to me, is this isn’t ex-doctor Breckenridges first outing. He already has been eviscerated on BBC television over the Seroxat mess. The distinguished advocate Charles Medawar has already called for Breckenridges resignation, but like many in the MHRA Regulators position, a crowbar is needed to remove them form office. Pity the likes of Breckenridge don’t look in the moral mirror and ask themselves if they have made a mistake over the likes of coproxamol and answer honestly. If they have, then they must fix their mess.
IMHO.
Russ.
Well thanks for confirming the banning manufacture of coproxamol in the EU is far from a fait accompli……..good luck with your investigation Russ.hope June comes up with something interesting to the cause ,,wish i could help,but you are better read up and informed than i am on the politics of this cause
Sorry Russ, as I thought, I CANNOT get back to your website without D4D ! I’m hopeless ! The Norwich candidate’s name is CRAIG Murray, sorry again, I’m tired ! June
Hi June,
Please don’t apologise. That is the incidious thing about all of this. The MHRA are roughing-up, no, they are kicking and killing disabled people. Fighting back isn’t that easy when you are fit and strong. Let alone when you are struggling to live with unmedicated pain day after day.
June, thankyou for the website. There is more than the aroma of rodent about Dr David Kelly’s death. Here is the link that June found….
http://www.craigmurray.org.uk/archives/2006/07/the_death_of_da.html
Cheers for that June. Hope you feel better tomorrow.
Russ, have just looked up the European Medicines AGENCY, for some reason is abbreviated to EMEA & on their website you can find all about it. June
Hi June,
Thanks for that.
Am on the case………
http://coproxamol.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=7
Cheers,
Russ.
P.S. A BIG thankyou to Lyle for maintaining the D4D site with Coprox thread, and to Martin for the new dedicated Coproxamol website.
Hi,
I’ve been eking out the Coprox and making do with paracetamol when I can (with difficulty of course).
Now I’m trying to order again and can’t find any of the sites I used before, Pharma2U, Medica2U etc etc.
I’ve used Offshore before but now I can’t get past the payment page and Veripayment told me before they were not processing them, although I did get one order after that I think.
So, where is anyone getting Coprox or Destirol from at the moment?
Thanks,
Avril
Hi Avril
I’ve got an appointment with a private GP tomorrow at a cost of £85!!!!! and that’s for 15 mins……lets hope he doesn’t keep me longer!!!!!! Then I get a private prescription to take to my Pharmacy and it’s going to cost about £25 per 100 tabs.
Poppy
Poppy, you poor thing, you MUST be desperate to allow some private GP to rip you off like that !! That’s outrageous ! All it means is that HE is prepared to take the legal risk of something unpleasant happening to you by taking the tabs FOR MONEY, because HE could be sued by your kin for giving you a prescription, just like MY GP could by giving ME a FREE prescrition ( I’m a pensioner ) It’s diabolical, but that’s one of the consequences of the withdrawal. Best wishes, June
Russ, If you’re interested in the David Kelly death theories, there’s a very illuminating comment in Global Earth website about it with details of the pathologist’s findings & omissions. The present investigation on the ? justification of the Iraq war could reveal some facts on DK too. Also a comment by F W Engdahl. My consultant Prof. Whorwell who agrees with us re. coprox. was very sceptical about the K suicide verdict. June
Hi Avril. Offshore Pharma will take Western Union, you will have to e-mail them for the details. Pharma 2u was changed to prescribe4u but the web site is not appearing at the moment, don’ know why.
I second Russ’s vote of thanks to Lyle for keeping the thread going, it’s the only place I can enter the debate as I’m not IT literate enough to paste & bookmark & all that !! I should take a course when I’ve time ! June
Sorry Russ, it’s Global RESEARCH not Earth ! June
I’m little impressed by the lead comment on your website lead, Lyle, using the c*** word, hardly adheres to your earlier comments about the use of offensive content not being tolerated by you ! I’m afraid ‘I’m OUT’ if that sort of tone continues, June
Avril when I used Safari to order my pills I too, could not get past the payment page.
My husband then put Firefox on my computer and suddenly the site worked with that.
Hi June
I’m a pensioner too….it cost me £110 today because it’s £25 for every 5 mins over the first 15 mins…….went to the pharmacy that said £25 for 100 tabs and was told by a different woman that it was £32 odds for a 100 tabs!!!!!! now I’m having to take my lovely little private prescription and hunt for a pharmacy thats a bit cheaper…….oh dear 🙁
Thanks Chris and Barbara,
I’ve emailed Offshore now from the site – would have phoned but the only contact I seem to have is the veripayment number.
Hi Poppy, that is shocking, if you want any help or advice on this matter e-mail me,address is on post 466,if not i wish you good luck. Chris.
Hi Poppy, Sadly there are rotten apples in every barrel. It’s just hard luck that you’ve got to help to line HIS pocket ! He should be struck off, in my opinion. He’s as bad as the pharm. companies that are ripping off the vulnerable, except that HE has sworn the Hippocratic oath too !! Have you tried making some discreet enquiries with your local chemists to find out WHICH local GPs ARE prescribing NAMED patients ? If you find one, try & change your GP to him ! So, in essence, your 100 tabs will cost you some £130 !! What happens for the NEXT PRESCRIPTION ?? Regards, June
Dear All & particularly Lyle, I’ve just been reading back posts which I missed during my ‘silence’ due to illness over the past six months or so. I am EXTREMELY worried at the detailed info. some people are putting into their comments re THEIR’S & suppliers email addresses. Also, the exchange on posts 270/71 in Jan 2008 just MAY be open to criminal prosecution for illegal drug supplying !! I notice that Mark Bavarelli is not still contributing to our debate, now he’s made his profit on his excess supply of drugs PROBABLY obtained on prescription from his GP. DO BE CAREFUL folks, anybody can read our comments, INCLUDING the people who have caused this problem for us !! Also, I suggest it is not only the pharmaceutical companies in UK & abroad which are profiting from this situation, but also the distributors in UK & abroad who also take their cut ! It seems extremely suspicious to me that the EMEA is seeking an EU ban on manufacturing in UK ! Could they be trying to close yet another of our loopholes to obtaining, based on info. they glean from open forums of debate on the internet ?? Take care ! June
June, i do not want you making ref to my posts, leave it to admin unless you have taken this role allready. Mark is a soft target because he does not post anymore, and i am sure many are aware of the problems regarding this matter.
You are making assumptions about people you don’t have a clue about. If the posts on here are making you so unhappy take some of your own advice, ref post714. And please don’t mention again about how you get a free prescript from your doctor, boring now.
Chris, my comment WAS addressed to admin, & was a KIND nudge to remind folks to be ever vigilent as they may be putting themselves at risk. I’m sorry if you took it the wrong way, it was NOT written as a criticism & should not have been taken as one, by you or anyone else. I am acutely aware of how desperate some people are to obtain coproxamol on prescription & am extremely sympathetic, & hope that they would not be irrationally jealous towards those like me who are more lucky. I could just collect my prescription & ‘be damned’ to the rest of you, but instead I am using my valuable time & energy to campaign on your behalf because I believe the law is immoral & should be changed by public pressure. So, please, let’s ‘shake hands’ & not quarrel when we’re both on the same side. June
June, to my mind it is a veiled criticism, and in my view i don’t think you need to go so far to influence admin.The forum has managed with out you, and will. I agree we are on the same side, but this is not the first time you have had to say, (sorry you took it that way). I will shake hands with you June because i think you mean well, but advice is good but less lecture needed, you are comming accross as a sour lemon.
June the word jealousy does not come into this ,yes you are lucky ,[please stop telling people how lucky you are ]when you can read the desperate measures people have to go to obtain coprox .you are taking an unlicenced drug yes ?your doctor is prescribing an unlicenced drug yes ?so come on June wake up and smell the coffee my dear …..we do apreaciate what Russ is doing ,and yes Poppy will get help if she wishes to accept it ,and no pockets will be lined ….so please June stop nit picking
Anne, Of course I know that coproxamol is an unlicensed drug, only legally available on a ‘named patient’ prescription from a doctor, but it’s not MY fault, be angry with the MHRA & Keith Hawton, not me ! My exchange was with Chris, with whom it appears I have made my peace, so please don’t take your anger out on me. This site could quite possibly be read by the Police or people who do not want coproxamol to be available from ANYWHERE by UK residents, so possibly leading them to suppliers by posts on this site may indirectly result in closure &/or prosecution of either one of you or the suppliers’ internet sites, e.g. Pharma2u,so making access to the drug even more difficult for you. I think it would be safer for EVERYONE if you all made alternative, safer arrangements to exchange these sensitive details rather than publicising them on this site. However, it’s no skin off my nose, so I shall bow out gracefully & leave you all to it ! June
Lyle, sadly, please remove my details from your admirable site as I shall not be contributing to the debate here in future. Russ, I’ll exchange with you on an alternative site. June
No Comment…
And there we have it.
I am pretty convinced that we have decent and fair people on this board.
It is also apparent that some are having to cope with pretty severe pain which makes us all short tempered at times.
Guys, it isn’t each other we should be angry with, it is those dangerous fools at the MHRA.
IMHO.
Best regards,
Russ.
Russ my darling of course you are right ,but there are times when we must express our personal feelings,yes we do have decent people on this site,we try to do our best to help people and at times alleviate the suffering of others ,same way as you, only in a different context….i really wish you all the best in your campaign…god knows you deserve it ……Anne
Hi Anne,
You cheered my day right up. Thankyou for the post.
Back to our main topic, are you aware of the “sodium channel”. It is not some salty tv station, but a thing relatively unique to coproxamol, or rather dextropopxyphene. I received a helpful email from Professor Bateman, who is firmly in the coproxamol-ban camp. I can understand why he is there. I can respect his position, but it still doesn’t remedy the mess the MHRA have made of this whole coproxamol Named-Patient disaster.
The full article and dialogue with the professor…..
http://coproxamol.proboards.com/index.cgi?action=display&board=general&thread=8&page=1
Very best regards,
Russ.
Hi team,
For all those hitherto feeling completely poweless to do anything about this mess, please can you consider copying and pasting the following….
http://coproxamol.proboards.com/index.cgi?board=general&action=display&thread=9
Then edit it for your own situation and email or write it in normal Royal Mail letter format to your MEP.
That should include all D4D readers who are on the Named-Patient system as it is not clear whether the EMEA are proposing to allow Named-Patient prescription to continue.
If they ban this too, then wait for the Zimmer Riots !!! As the 150,000 residual, along with those still trying to get on the Named-Patient list, represent a pretty hard core batch of disabled pain-wracked people. Any questions, please post underneath and I shall do my best to answer.
Cheers,
Russ.
hi russ ..read the article ,is the EMEA ban the one that came into force 1st jan 2008 or is this a different one …..my sodium channel receptors keep blocking up here lol ..you said it was a definite ban so when does it come into force ?il have to read up on article 31of directive 2001/83/ec..il be back …
oh ..62 pages ,well after reading directive 2001/83ec i think they could have a problem trying to ban coprox ,article 31refers to all member states agreeing on a course of action .article 32 refers to the commitee issuing a reason OPION on this matter within 90 days or 180 days if they cant agree or appoint experts to advise it if the still cant agree [it could drag on for years in my opinion].other points of intrests from this directive include page 5 ,para 52 states that persons qualified to prescribe or supply products must have access to an nuetral objective souce of information about the product [that just might exclude the MHRA .]in article 4 para 3 states that the provisions of this directive shall not affect the powers of member state authorities either as regards setting of prices for medicinal products or their inclusion in national health schemes ….well in my veiw ,the odds on a EC ban in the forseeable future ?somewhat greater than winning the euro millions jackpot i think ……but thats just my veiw ,oh that was hard reading
Hi Anne,
Well done on wadeing through that. I am having a few bad days just now, so am not up to scratch on the research front. When head is a bit more pain free I will study the fine print.
Though I remain convinced now that the only way to shift the MHRA is to have the police go in and audit/interview/caution/charge them.
So far I have one attempted suicide BECAUSE of the mishandled MHRA coproxamol ban and lack of pain relief, and four professors plus three doctors lined up to be called as witnesses. BUT given the fact that 1,700,000 were originally prescribed coproxamol and the NPCi figures say only 73,000 are on the Named-Patient list I am statistically convinced that the MHRA will be at the receiving end of their culpability in the ACTUAL death of someone through pain wracked suicide. As mentioned earlier, enquiries are being made to research this issue, and of course the delicate matter of asking berieved families for their permissions.
This whole thing is all the more a tragedy as the MHRA’s original aim was a noble one. To reduce accidental coproxamol overdoses. Such a disaster that they are so bungling, incompetent and stubborn they refuse to listen to Parliament and reclassify coproxamol as a Class-A drug so doctors, who, lets face it are THE clinicians, can prescribe to those in unmedicated pain, whilst preserving the GP medical insurance and GP union support.
Hi all,
Is there an actual ‘named-patient list’ ?
When I talk to my health board (Ayrshire & Arran) anout named patients, or my doctors, (who don’t want to talk about co-proxamol at all again), they deny any knowledge of the named patient thing.
Becaue its unlicenced it is, as one doctor said to me, a question of ‘his livelihood’ at stake to prescribe it.
I have totally failed to find out where even one of those 150,000 prescriptions is being written from. Do you think there is a difference between England/Scotland in this?
I’m in Scotland and had to go to a private GP for a prescription. Cost me dear for consultation and of course paying for the Coproxamol.
Hi Poppy..why did you have to go to a private doc and pay all that money ?…what about medica?i think Chris offered you some help and advice ..yes
Hi Avril ..i come from Scotland ,yes there is a named patient sytem up here ….ha ha but try and find a doc put you on it …thats another matter …
Hi Avril, Anne and Poppy,
The Scottish doctor was right. It is his livelihood (and medical registration at the GMC) that are at stake. As mentioned before, the Medical Defence Union of Scotland have advised all doctors not to presribe coproxamol under any circumstances because of the medico-legal risks. The MHRA have put doctors in harms way….
http://www.mddus.com/mddus/news-and-events/news/january-08/risk-alert-co-proxamol-withdrawal.aspx
As for patients? What is the Latin motto for Let Them Die In Untreated Agony? The MHRA should adopt it.
Oh i agree Russ ,thats the very words my doctor told me ….as he said il be struck off ,and he was against the ban of coprox ….
Well, sure is an emotive subject this coproxamol thing. Ive received a terrible injury some years ago and once I was all patched up I had ongoing pain and will do for the rest of my life. The doctor first prescribed me coproxamol in 2003 and I have been taking it ever since. When it was “withdrawn” my doc tried me on a cocktail of other drugs which incuded things like dihydracodeine but try as he might to find an alternative nothing comes close to coproxamol. It just works – end of story.
At the moment I get prescribed on a ‘named patient’ basis and have never had any complications with the drug whatsoever. I have however noticed one side effect which I think may go some way to explaining why the powers that be want to ban it. Bssically people, it makes me feel good as well as kill the pain – and whats so bad about that??
You know what, I think too many people have too much to say about things they know nothing about. I know how much pain I am in and I know that these tablets make my life worth living and I couldnt care less what some faceless “do gooder” thinks is best for me. I hope that this drug is not banned outright for if it is, I fear that the pain and quality of life I would be left with would not be worth living and should that be the case, you can rest assured that I will say so in the note I leave.
One final point, please dont argue amongst each other. You all seem to be on the same side. Remember, divided we will fall but united we just may have a chance.
Hi Anne, Medica charge £46.50 for a 100 Coproxamol and the pharmacy I get them from now charge £23.74. So while the private doc charged a lot the pills are cheaper and I’m getting them from a reputable source.
Hi All,
Once when I had bad sinus trouble and the (Thatcher) government took a lot of medicines off the NHS list, including the one that helped me, I was able to get private prescriptions for it from my GP .
But the big difference was that the medicine had not had it’s licence revoked – it was just no longer on the list of what you could get on the NHS.
Last week I asked my current GP (while he attempted to hide in a cupboard!) if there was a different way I could see a GP privately (like you can a consultant. ) and he said No,
it was the same as before – he could write me a private prescription but not for an unlicensed drug.
So I guess you are lucky Poppy, or else I am living in a particularly hard-line area.
After failing to find them for a bit I’ve just received an order from the old firm’s new website – very quick delivery, and cheaper than before.
(And at least as reputable as high street chemists who are happy to sell potentially highly dangerous drugs such as Imitrex and Ibuprofen etc without prescription, at high prices).
Hi Avril …Old Firm ,i thought you were talking about the football Celtic & Rangers lol lol
Take it it’s Offshore Phar…yes i agree with you about the chemists…..
Where did everyone go?
I presume most folk are getting their items with no problems terrance.
Any chance of them telling the rest of us where ?
Co-proxamol was withdrawn to give the manufacturers of the far more expensive, and less effective Tramadol an increased market share. Tramadol is now being manufactured combined with Paracetemol as Tramacet to replace Co-prox.
The truth is that the so-called consultation process that led to its withdrawal was a fat lie -there was NOT a majority in favour of withdrawing it. You can download a .pdf of the Freedom of Information Act request for all correspondence the MHRA received on co-prox here.
http://www.mhra.gov.uk/Aboutus/Freedomofinformationanddataprotection/Freedomofinformation/MHRAinformationdisclosuresundertheFOIAct/Previousdisclosures/CON049136
Drug companies are profit hungry cheats interested in the their bank balances. They have a cosy relationship with regulators & medical boards, and have pulled this stunt before. The powerful painkiller Palfium was discontinued, with Roche claiming problems “obtaining the required chemicals to manufacture”, just before the expensive US painkiller Oxycontin was given UK licence.
The very last people EVER to be consulted on any kind of painkiller issue are the patients themselves. Apparently they think if you aren’t rich enough to go private you take what the state gives & go shut the fuck up already.
High time we ended ALL state regulation of drugs and allowed people to take what the wish. The government can confine itself to educating people in not hurting themselves, and collecting a tax on sales to pay for rehabs for addicts etc.
“Prohibition is both unworkable in practice and immoral in principle” Abraham Lincoln
Hey Guys 🙂
Just thought I would look in and say Hi to everyone. 🙂
How is everyone? Everything alright?
Andrea
🙂
Hi Andrea, its good to see you are still out there. It’s is very quiet at the moment, not much to comment on really. So i suppose folks are getting their DG ok?