A coroner has sounded the alarm about the dangers of fake online pharmacies after a man died from an accidental overdose of drugs he had purchased from a seemingly legitimate website.
Christopher Brazil, from Ceredigion in west Wales, had suffered an accident "some time before his death" which left him with a painful injury.
The 45-year-old also suffered from sciatica – a painful condition caused by irritation of a nerve – as well as depression, and had previously sought help from his family doctor for these problems.
But Mr. Brazil ordered additional medication online, including benzodiazepines, a type of tranquilizer, to help with the pain and his changing mental health.
He managed to purchase these drugs from illegal websites that presented themselves as "safe and regulated online pharmacies," concluded coroner Louisa Corcoran.
In August 2022, just a few months after he had started taking benzodiazepines, he died from an unintentional overdose, with drugs that had not been prescribed by his doctor or the NHS.
Investigations by the police and the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) revealed that these drugs had been purchased by Mr Brazil from two illegal suppliers.
In a Report on Preventing Future Deaths, Ms. Corcoran wrote:
“There are unregulated and illegal websites that offer prescription medications and controlled drugs, which appear legitimate and are easily found with simple online searches.
Mr. Brazil was dealing with physical pain and mental disorders and was sensitive to this illegal option, which was quick and easily accessible.
“The evidence indicates that Mr. Brazil was not suicidal, but was concerned about managing his pain and had not been instructed by health professionals on the amount and method of medication use.”
Healthcare professionals have long warned about fraudulent online "pharmacies" that target vulnerable patients who may be short of medication or in urgent need of it.
Last year, experts warned about fake products like Ozempic and ADHD drugs being sold online, with no guarantee of what they really contained.
Although many recommendations have been made to stop the distribution of prescription and illicit drugs over the internet, the lack of regulation has meant that potentially fatal drugs remain available.
The UK's pharmacy regulator, the General Pharmaceutical Council (GPhC), says that legitimate online pharmacies must have the GPhC logo and registration number - usually located on the homepage or in the "about us" section.
Anyone can check if a pharmacy is legitimate by entering the registration number into the GPhC pharmacy register on their official website.
In her report, Ms. Corcoran emphasized that Mr. Brazil's death raises serious concerns about these illegal and unregulated websites that offer prescription drugs.
According to the report, the drugs from Mr. Brazil's last order were delivered the next day via Royal Mail.
He had managed to regularly purchase prescription drugs from illegal providers, and emergency room records showed that on two separate occasions — in February and April 2022 — he had been “intoxicated by benzodiazepines.”
Ms. Corcoran added:
"These sites expose vulnerable and vulnerable people to counterfeit or unsafe medicines. There is insufficient age and identity verification, potentially allowing minors to access restricted medicines."
"Also, these sites do not take into account patients' medical history and do not provide guidance to prevent self-diagnosis or misuse."
A copy of her report was sent to the Department of Health, the Department for Culture, Media and Sport, Mr Brazil's family doctor, the MHRA, and the police.
All of these institutions “have the power to prevent similar deaths in the future,” Ms. Corcoran warned.
Last year, an investigation revealed that some online "wild west pharmacies" were selling fatal doses of addictive drugs, without any proper safety checks.
The BBC investigation attempted to purchase three types of restricted drugs — including painkillers, sleeping pills and anti-anxiety drugs — from various online sites.
They identified 20 sites that offered these drugs without GP approval.
Researchers secured 1,600 prescription pills, including a potentially fatal dose of an anti-anxiety medication.
Buyers could get these drugs in just a few minutes, after filling out an online questionnaire — one site even described the process as “as easy as ordering groceries online.”
In 2019, health authorities called on doctors to stop overprescribing benzodiazepines, due to growing concerns about addiction and severe withdrawal symptoms.
Benzodiazepines, including Valium, were the mainstay of insomnia treatment for decades.
But over time, they fell out of common use due to risks of addiction and severe side effects. /GazetaExpress/
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