Controversial acne drug Roaccutane to be reviewed by government panel after being blamed for spate of suicides and depression Roaccutane is to be reviewed by the Commission on Human MedicinesThe drug has been linked to depression and to a number of suicidesBy Emma Innes Published: 15:35 GMT, 28 April 2014 | Updated: 16:29 GMT, 28 April 2014 var twitterVia = '
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2615052/Controversial-acne-drug-Roaccutane-reviewed-government-panel-blamed-spate-suicides-depression.html
Controversial acne drug Roaccutane to be reviewed by government panel after being blamed for spate of suicides and depression Roaccutane is to be reviewed by the Commission on Human MedicinesThe drug has been linked to depression and to a number of suicidesBy Emma Innes Published: 15:35 GMT, 28 April 2014 | Updated: 16:29 GMT, 28 April 2014 var twitterVia = '
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2615052/Controversial-acne-drug-Roaccutane-reviewed-government-panel-blamed-spate-suicides-depression.html#ixzz30OwRR0jU
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http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2615052/Controversial-acne-drug-Roaccutane-reviewed-government-panel-blamed-spate-suicides-depression.html
Controversial acne drug Roaccutane to be reviewed by government panel after being blamed for spate of suicides and depression Roaccutane is to be reviewed by the Commission on Human MedicinesThe drug has been linked to depression and to a number of suicidesBy Emma Innes Published: 15:35 GMT, 28 April 2014 | Updated: 16:29 GMT, 28 April 2014 var twitterVia = '
The government is to review a controversial acne drug that has been blamed for causing depression and a number of suicides.
Health ministers have ordered the probe after meeting families who say their loved ones committed suicide after taking Roaccutane.
The Commission on Human Medicines, will review all the data on the drug over the next two months and the risk of adverse psychiatric reactions.
A government panel is set to review the controversial acne drug Roaccutane which has been blamed for causing depression and a number of suicides
It will include experts in clinical pharmacology, dermatology, psychiatry and a representative from the British Association of Dermatologists.
News of the review came on Friday as some of the families protested outside the headquarters of the manufacturer Roche, in Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire.
They included the parents of Jamie Sillcock, 26, who suffocated himself in December 2012 after years of mental health problems he blamed on the drug.
He was prescribed Roaccutane at 16 but stopped 18 months later when he began suffering anxiety, fatigue and blurred vision.
Jamie Sillcock suffocated himself in 2012 after years of mental health problems he blamed on the drug. His parents, Melvin and Lorraine, say he never got the drug out of his system and was plagued by mental health problems for eight years
His parents, Melvin and Lorraine, say he never got the drug out of his system and was plagued by mental health problems for eight years.
Mr Sillcock, 62, a photographer from Sittingbourne, Kent said: ‘They need to find out why this drug affects a percentage of people in the way it does.
‘It's like Russian roulette - no one knows how much damage it will do to each person.
‘The manufacturers are making millions off Roaccutane - but it has caused devastation for thousands of families.
‘We're pleased that the government appear to be taking this seriously, at last.
‘I don't think this would have happened without the pressure from the families so we do see it as a small victory.
Medical student Jon Medland committed suicide in 2004. His family said his death was linked to the drug Roaccutane
‘However we won't stop fighting until this drug is either made safe or taken off the shelves for good.’
Jonathan Medland, 57, from Barnstaple, lost his 22-year-old son Jon, who committed suicide three weeks after starting a course of Roaccutane.
A Roche spokeswoman said: ‘Roaccutane has transformed the lives of many acne sufferers, but like most medications it can have side effects.
‘Whilst no definitive cause and effect relationship has been established to directly link mood swings and depression with the drug, there have been rare reports, amongst both those taking Roaccutane and acne sufferers in general.
‘As a caution we recommend that anybody experiencing these, or other possible side effects with the treatment, to tell their doctor immediately.’
Jon Medland's parents Jonathan and Pam Medland and his sister Casey. Jon's family blame his death on the drug that he had begun taking just three weeks before to help cure acne
In 2012 Jack Bowlby, 16, the nephew of racehorse trainer Jenny Pitman, was found dead at his boarding school.
His family said they felt Roaccutane 'may have played a part' in his death, and that patients and their parents should be 'very aware of the possible risks'.
The same year Melissa Martin-Hughes, 18, hanged herself after spiralling into depression because of severe acne.
The grammar school girl, who was predicted to get three A*s in her A-levels, had been taking the drug for her condition.
News of the review comes just after it was revealed that Roaccutane is being illegally sold online by dealers in Britain.
The medicines watchdog launched an investigation after The Mail on Sunday discovered three websites, including eBay, selling the drug.
Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/health/article-2615052/Controversial-acne-drug-Roaccutane-reviewed-government-panel-blamed-spate-suicides-depression.html#ixzz30OwRR0jU
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