a 'tan' you can inject has health risks, including cancer

melanotan-ii is available online, even though it hasn't been approved for human use and carries health risks including nausea and skin cancer.

by maija kappler

published mar 22, 2022

last updated apr 19, 2022

4 minute read

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4 minute read

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a 'tan' you can inject has health risks, including cancer

a chemical called melanotan-ii, sometimes referred to as the "barbie drug," is ingested either through an injection or a nasal spray. getty

what would you do for a great tan? tanning is a usd$3.9 billion dollar industry precisely because of how many people are willing to pay to look like they’ve spent hours in the sun. while experts, including the canadian cancer society, warn that almost any change to your skin colour is dangerous, whether naturally from the sun or artificially via chemicals, the beauty standard hasn’t quite caught up: it’s easy to book an appointment for a spray tan or some time in a tanning bed, and there are also lotions, sprays, drops, or waters that you can apply at home for that sun-kissed look.

there’s also another, more harmful, method: a chemical called melanotan-ii, sometimes referred to as the “barbie drug,” which is ingested either through an injection or a nasal spray. it evolved as a variation on what used to be called melanotan-i, a legitimate medical product now called afamelanotide. afamelanotide, sold under the brand name scenesse, is a drug sometimes used to prevent sun damage in people with erythropoietic protoporphyria, a rare skin disorder that can cause swelling and pain after even a short time spent in the sun.

but while afamelanotide may be prescribed in rare cases under a doctor’s supervision, melanotan-ii is very different. it has not been cleared has not been approved by health canada, and is not cleared for human use. but still, melanotan-ii is easily accessible for purchase online. one company that sells the drug stipulates that it should be used for “laboratory and academic research,” and that it should not be “ingested or used on humans,” but there doesn’t appear to be any restrictions on its purchase beyond that warning. the company did not respond to healthing’s request for comment.

cancer risk

steven gilroy, executive director of the joint canadian tanning association, which represents the tanning industry, said the drug represents a threat to our health. “the jcta discourages the use of any of these types of products,” gilroy told healthing. “we are very concerned that canadians are even thinking about purchasing this product from a website.”

there’s also evidence that melanotan-ii can lead to skin cancer, dr. catherine borysiewicz of the british association of dermatologists told bbc news. “we have cases which have shown melanoma developing after trying [it],” she said.

health canada wouldn’t comment directly on the sale of melanotan, other than to say that it hasn’t approved any “drugs nor injectables for tanning purposes.” a spokesperson for the agency added that “if you buy drugs online, you may be putting your health at serious risk.”

why melanotan-ii is dangerous

melanotan-ii is a hormone that works by mimicking the skin’s production of melanin, a pigment that makes our skin darker.

but while melanotan-ii was developed to try to prevent skin cancer, it may actually cause it — as well as several other health problems. there hasn’t been extensive research on its dangers, but what’s out there is concerning. a 2020 case report looked into a 66-year-old man who developed melanoma, a form of skin cancer, four weeks after he began injecting melanotan-ii. the man regularly wore sunscreen and got his skin checked, had not used tanning beds, and had no family history of skin cancer. while researchers couldn’t prove definitively that the melanotan-ii caused his cancer, it did appear to cause a lesion on his jaw to darken substantially.

“numerous case reports have shown even short duration of use [of melanotan] can induce changes in longstanding lesions,” the study found.

its presence can also change the shape and colour of moles, which can make cancer harder to find, and “help melanoma cells evade detection.”

and if the risk of skin cancer risk isn’t enough to deter you from seeking an injectable tan, melanotan also has numerous side effects. according to webmd, these including nausea, cramping, fatigue, and spontaneous erections (it’s been studied as a treatment for erectile dysfunction).

then there’s the fact that because the product is unregulated, you don’t actually know what you’re buying when you purchase melanotan online. a 2015 study found between 4.1 and 5.9 per cent impurities in melanotan-ii bought from two different sources.

“if you don’t know what you’re taking, you should probably avoid it,” tony cass says, a chemical biology professor at imperial college london, told bbc news. it’s like russian roulette, he said, but “it’s more like using a machine gun than a pistol.”

if you really “need” a tan, do this

most of the ways we tan — tanning beds, lying out in the sun, even with sunscreen on — actually increase our risk of skin cancer, the canadian cancer society says. the only safe alternative is using bronzers or other temporary tanning products. they’re safe to wear as long as you apply them carefully, avoiding contact with the eyes, nose and mouth, and remembering to still wear sunscreen.

but be careful to buy products from outlets you trust, and to read the ingredients. bbc news sent 10 self-tanning kits to research chemists for analysis. they were surprised to find that some contained melanotan, among other unidentified ingredients. some products included more than 100 unnamed components.

maija kappler is a reporter and editor at healthing. you can reach her at mkappler@postmedia.com

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