What is Melanotan-II - the drug that the TGA urges ...

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A TikTok influencer grins into the camera. Shirtless, his bronzed skin contrasts on a light background.

&#;Let&#;s talk about Melanotan-II and the wonders it did for me,&#; he says in the video over upbeat music.

&#;Essentially what this stuff is going to do is allow you to get way tanner, way quicker.&#;

This is one of many similar videos promoting the drug Melanotan-II found on TikTok, Instagram and other social media platforms. And despite the drug being banned in Australia, it is easy to find websites where you can buy Melanotan-II as a nasal spray or injectable vial, and have it delivered to your home.

Dubbed the &#;Barbie drug&#;, Melanotan-II promises users a rapid tan without long hours in the sun. This, along with other effects including weight loss, has contributed to strong interest in Melanotan-II online.

However, Melanotan-II is far from a harmless drug. Medical experts from UNSW Sydney warn that Melanotan-II can cause serious side effects, and potentially even cause melanoma.

How does Melanotan-II work?

Melanotan-II is a synthetic version of α-Melanocyte-stimulating-hormone (α-MSH), which is produced in the pituitary gland of the brain and is naturally present in our bodies. The α-MSH acts on specialised skin cells responsible for producing pigment.

The drug hacks the body&#;s regulation of pigment cells, tricking the body into tanning itself.

&#;In our skin, we have pigment cells and we have hormones that regulate the activity of those pigment cells. So what Melanotan-II does is mimic the action of those hormones and upregulate the activity of our pigment cells,&#; said Associate Professor Deshan Sebaratnam, who is a dermatologist at Liverpool Hospital and Conjoint Associate Professor at UNSW Medicine & Health.

&#;It means that our pigment cells produce more melanin and that&#;s what gives you your tan.&#;

If injected or used as a nasal spray, Melanotan-II can cause dramatic skin darkening in just days. The drug can also suppress appetite and lead to weight loss, another effect that some users find desirable.  

Potential to cause melanoma

Serious safety concerns have surrounded Melanotan-II since it was first developed at the University of Arizona in the s. Chief among those is the drug&#;s potential to induce melanoma, the deadliest form of skin cancer.

&#;You&#;re stimulating pigment cells with Melanotan-II. If you do that enough, you can cause abnormal proliferation of the cells,&#; said Dr John Frew, who is a dermatologist at Liverpool Hospital and Conjoint Senior Lecturer at UNSW Medicine & Health. &#;And this can jumpstart the progression to the possible development of melanoma.&#;

Previous case reports have shown some Melanotan-II users develop skin-based complications, including melanoma, however the evidence is still limited.  

&#;Case reports have described melanomas emerging from existing moles either during or shortly after the use of Melanotan-II,&#; said Professor Bernard Stewart from UNSW Medicine & Health, who is an internationally recognised expert in environmental carcinogenesis (cancer causation). &#;However, evidence for causal associations is lacking&#; Definitive proof is yet to be established.&#;

Another lesser-known danger of Melanotan-II is its neurological effects. As well as affecting pigment cells in the skin, the drug can bind to receptors in the brain and influence processes like appetite and sexual function.

&#;There are a few strange neurological effects reported with Melanotan-II. Typically, the nausea, vomiting and facial flushing are more prominent&#; There are also reports of priapism [prolonged erections] and yawning,&#; Dr Frew said.

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Beware of social media advertising

Melanotan-II is not approved for use in Australia by the Therapeutics Goods Administration (TGA).

According to a TGA spokesperson, &#;its development as a potential medicine was halted some years ago due to safety reasons.&#;

And yet, some Australians continue to use Melanotan-II for tanning, despite continued warnings from the TGA. This could be driven by the numerous endorsements and testimonials from users on social media platforms including TikTok and Instagram.

Advertising and supplying Melanotan-II to the public are illegal and the TGA says it is working with social media and digital platforms to address allegedly unlawful advertising by users.

A TikTok spokesperson said at the time of the latest TGA warning that videos promoting or selling nasal tanning sprays and melanotan breached the platform&#;s rules and had been removed. 

&#;We have also banned hashtags including #tanningnasalspray #melanotan and #melanotan2.&#;

Meta, which owns Instagram, also prohibits content on its platforms which promotes illegal products, though videos featuring Melanotan-II continue to appear, with measures taken to avoid the restrictions such as using generic hashtags like #tanning.

Dr Frew said that questions remain about how to protect social media users from the advertising of illegal and harmful products, and the responsibilities of social platforms.   

&#;The reach of the TGA is obviously quite limited in terms of what happens on TikTok and Instagram. That&#;s a big problem with no clear solution.&#;

Despite continued regulatory action and potentially dangerous health effects, a social media trend promoting Melanotan II &#; an illicit tanning drug &#; continues to prevail in the market. LegitScript has observed that in an attempt to skirt account termination and regulatory scrutiny, merchants commonly attempt to disguise their activities with generic packaging and vague marketing, presenting consumer safety risks as well as elevated risk for card brand fines and regulatory scrutiny for payment service providers.

How Does Melanotan II Work and Why is it Trendy?

Melanotan II is a peptide or protein-based drug that acts as a synthetic version of a hormone called α-MSH, which regulates the skin cells responsible for producing pigment. When Melanotan II is injected or used as a nasal spray (its two common forms), it mimics α-MSH, and can cause dramatic skin darkening within days. This melanin-increasing function is its most notorious, but the drug has several other&#;potentially dangerous&#;effects and has been reported to cause heart, blood, and eye disorders, among other conditions.

Melanotan&#;s rapid skin-darkening effect has made it a desirable &#;shortcut&#; product for those hoping to achieve the golden, tanned skin that remains a popular symbol of beauty and health. In recent years, Melanotan II has made a particular splash online; a BBC article calls attention to dozens of influencers promoting the nasal spray to millions of followers on TikTok. LegitScript has noted a correlated increase in merchants marketing nasal tanning products via social media, often with generic, self-branded packaging. Due to the high level of risk associated with Melanotan II, LegitScript is keeping a close watch on the trends and marketing strategies connected with it.

The Dangers of an Illegal and Unregulated Product

Melanotan II was initially developed and touted as a cancer preventative but has since been the subject of bans, warning letters, and even criminal prosecution in multiple jurisdictions. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has not approved the drug for any indication, and regulatory agencies of the United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand, among others, have also deemed it illegal to sell.

Users of the nasal spray form of the drug have reported side effects such as headaches, dizziness, panic attacks, nausea, vomiting, facial flushing, unusual moles, and more. It has also been linked to cases of melanoma (3, 4, 6, 8). Aside from the dangers of Melanotan II alone, consumers risk exposure to any number of mystery ingredients. The BBC describes the findings of research chemists at Imperial College London who analyzed 10 tanning kits, &#;[t]hey would expect to find about 10 ingredients in a licensed medicine,&#; they write, &#;but were shocked to discover some of the products contained more than 100 unidentified ingredients.&#; In attempts to avoid detection and stay in business, sellers of nasal tanning spray often offer little-to-no information about their products&#; contents.

How Marketers of Melanotan II Attempt to Fly Under the Radar

Despite its notable health risks, melanotan&#;s popularity has not waned. Its regulatory status has not halted demand either. TikTok has taken measures to mitigate the dangerous trend by removing videos promoting or selling Melanotan II and nasal tanning spray, as well as banning hashtags including #nasaltanningspray, #melanotan, and #melanotan2. However, as LegitScript has previously noted with the unapproved drug Apetamin, many sellers have simply adjusted their marketing in order to avoid scrutiny.

Between -, the melanotan-related merchants encountered by LegitScript were almost exclusively reported with the BRAM and VIRP actions, indicating that these merchants were blatantly marketing the banned product. In recent years, however, LegitScript analysts have increasingly used the Suspected Transaction Laundering action in order to note the risk presented by bad actors who avoid the term &#;melanotan&#; while marketing generically packaged nasal tanning sprays that bear striking resemblance to the drug. Analysts have learned to look for the following common characteristics that indicate a merchant&#;s tanning product may be repackaged Melanotan II:

• The products may appear in generic plastic containers without apparent safety seals.
• The products may display overly simplistic and unprofessional-looking labels. They may be self-branded with the merchant&#;s logo, or display no label at all.
• The products typically lack an ingredients list and often have a sparse product description.
• The marketing may describe the application and purpose commonly associated with Melanotan II (e.g. &#;nasal&#; language, references to tanning &#;strengths&#;).
• The marketing may include images of individuals with deeply tanned skin, stark tan lines, and before-and-after skin comparisons.
• The marketing may refer to the products as &#;MT2&#; or simply &#;2,&#; common abbreviations for Melanotan II.
• The product packaging may mimic the form factors of those known to contain Melanotan II (e.g. small bottles with nasal spray caps).

LegitScript Analysts Continuously Adapt to Detect Risk

As regulatory and media scrutiny has increased, many merchants have continued to sell illegal products, attempting to fade into the shadows and avoid consequences. However, their detection remains imperative to the well-being of consumers and the safety of the internet and payment ecosystems. LegitScript has paid close attention to the shifting online presence of Melanotan II and nasal tanning sprays, learning common marketing strategies and allowing analysts to identify nuanced risk factors that may be missed by measures such as social media tag bans. LegitScript analysts continue to vigilantly monitor and report any risk associated with Melanotan II.

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