The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency sent the woman a letter regarding the fake pens
The box of Mounjaro which is thought to be ‘fake’
A woman has slammed a Birmingham pharmacy after buying ‘fake’ Mounjaro pens to aid her ongoing weight loss.
The 46-year-old woman, who has asked not to be named, has been injecting herself with the drug since May last year.
And after initially purchasing it from Boots, she began to buy from The Private Pharmacy Clinic in Birmingham via online orders around six months ago.
READ MORE: Secret to getting the best of BirminghamLive’s stories
It was not until she was contacted by The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency on March 2 that she realised something was wrong with her latest batch of the drug.
The agency found that some injectable pens contained counterfeit Mounjaro (tirzepatide).
In the days since, the woman claims she had tried to contact The Private Pharmacy Clinic but ‘to no avail’.
Each of the 15mg injector pens of the drug costs around £300, and she has spent more than £1,000 buying from The Private Pharmacy Clinic, she told BirminghamLive.
She added: “I’ve used [The Private Pharmacy Clinic] for the past six months and never had an issue. They’ve been good – I’ve submitted an order, they’ve accepted it and it has turned up.
She received a letter from The Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency
“I only became aware of something being wrong on Monday (March 2) when I had a letter from the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency saying that they were contacting me because there was a possibility I had a fake pen.
“They gave me the batch code number to check, and yes, I did have one. Then I had a phone call with them two days later and they said it was possible that the last two injections I had from [The Private Pharmacy Clinic] were also fake.”
The woman, who lives in Devon, found The Private Pharmacy Clinic after seeing an advert for the company on Facebook.
After taking what she believed to be Maunjaro purchased through the pharmacy, the woman noticed her weight loss had slowed.
“I’ve been ok in the health bracket,” she said. “I assumed that my body was becoming tolerant to the drug because I found I wasn’t losing weight as much as I used to.
“The regulatory authority said that they had tested some pens and found the product inside was the correct product, but they had a reading of between seven and 11 milligrams, but they should have been 15 milligrams.
“The pens were also fake and not sterile, so the worry was that infections could have been caused. They said that my weight loss slowed because I wasn’t getting the correct dosage.”
Each time she ordered a new injector pen, the woman had to send up-to-date measurements, weight information and pictures of herself.
A post on The Private Pharmacy Clinic website
She continued: “I haven’t decided to spend the money lightly. I have underlying health conditions, so losing weight has helped me. I use crutches and can’t walk very far, so losing that extra bit of weight has helped me.”
The woman has lost around 5.5st since she began taking Mounjaro in May last year. She plans to continue taking the drug and has had to source a new supplier as she chases a refund from The Private Pharmacy Clinic.
In regards to contacting them, she said: “I’m trying but I’m not getting very far. They’re not answering their phones and I’ve been bombarding them with emails.
“I filled out a form that they sent a link to and mentioned that they were going to speak to insurance but I shouldn’t have to wait [for a refund].
“I’ve raised it with my bank to do a chargeback but have to wait and see.”
A statement on the Gov website reads: “As a precautionary measure, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) is contacting certain individual patients to make them aware of a small possibility that they may have been dispensed a fake Mounjaro (tirzepatide) KwikPen 15mg solution for injection for weight-loss management from The Private Pharmacy Clinic in Birmingham.
“All the affected fake pens identified to date are 15mg pens with the batch number: D873576 dispensed by this pharmacy.
“This is a legitimate batch number for genuine Mounjaro KwikPen 7.5mg, and pens at this strength are not impacted.”
Dr Alison Cave, Chief Safety Officer at the MHRA added: “Check the batch number and strength of your KwikPen. If you have one of the affected pens, stop using it straight away. Please report it to the MHRA by emailing info@mhra.gov.uk. Please include ‘Mounjaro Pens’ in the subject line. Keep the pen in a safe place.
“If you have administered injections using the pen already, please be reassured that, based on the cases reviewed to date, the risk to you is low.
“Testing has confirmed that the identified fake pens do contain tirzepatide, the active substance in Mounjaro, but because the manufacturing conditions are unknown, we cannot confirm that the contents are sterile.
“If you are unsure of how to identify the pen, or are unsure on whether you have administered an affected product and have any questions, please speak to a healthcare professional.
“If you suspect that you’ve had a side effect as a result of using these affected pens, or suspect it’s not a genuine product, or have a defective pen, you can report it to our MHRA Yellow Card scheme. It is important you do not try to extract any of this medicine if a pen is defective in any way.
“If you have a 15mg pen and the batch number is different to D873576, please continue to take the medication as directed by your prescriber.”
The Private Pharmacy Clinic did not respond to our request for a comment.
A statement on the website says: “The Private Pharmacy Clinic is currently working with the appropriate regulatory authorities in relation to an ongoing review.
“While this process is underway, we are unable to accept or process orders.”