Australian actor Richard Norton's death linked to peptide usage, coroner finds
Australian actor and stuntman Richard Norton's death was ‘triggered’ by unauthorised peptide use, a coroner has said.
Norton, who worked with Hollywood stars including Margot Robbie, Ben Affleck and Liam Neeson, passed away at Melbourne's Alfred Hospital on March 30 last year, aged 75.
Coroner David Ryan has now found that Norton, who was also an experienced martial artist, died after injecting himself with an ‘excess’ dose of unapproved peptides that had been prescribed to him by a doctor.
“I am satisfied that Richard’s death was triggered by his injection of the peptide CJC1295/Ipamorelin,” Ryan wrote in the report.
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“Richard had been taking amounts of the medication in excess of the dose prescribed by his medical practitioner.
“The injection caused an anaphylactic reaction which in turn led to cardiac arrest.”
CJC-1295 and Ipamorelin are synthetic peptides that stimulate the body's natural production of growth hormone and are typically promoted for muscle growth, weight loss and recovery enhancement.
Norton’s death is reportedly the first in Australia to be linked to peptide use.
The coroner recommended the Therapeutic Goods Administration re-examine the risks and benefits of the drugs, and consider imposing stricter guidelines.
"I am not satisfied that it is appropriate for them to be available to be prescribed by medical practitioners," the coroner said.
"It is not clear to me how their safe use can be clinically indicated given the acknowledged uncertainties as to their therapeutic benefit and their risks (as yet not fully known) to the safety of patients."
Ryan’s report also noted that Norton’s doctor has explained the experimental nature of the peptide treatment and the lack of Therapeutic Goods Administration-approved options for it.
The report also stated that Norton signed an informed consent form about the treatment.
Ryan wrote: “He disclosed ... that he had been previously prescribed peptides by another practitioner which had been effective in treating symptoms relating to fatigue, reduced physical recovery, shoulder pain and loss of lean muscle mass.”
The report stated that on 28 March last year, Norton told a nurse he had been taking more than his prescribed dose of peptides, with the nurse telling him to follow the correct dosage.
Just hours later, Norton ‘felt hot and flushed’ before becoming unresponsive and passing away in hospital.
The Australian coroner's ruling comes after a warning was issued in the UK about the sale of 'sketchy' peptides available for sale online.
Many of those sold online are not approved for human use by the UK’s Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA).
The head of borderlines at the MHRA, Lynda Scammell, told LADbible: “Peptide products may be sold as cosmetics, supplements and medicines, and depending on their intended purpose, they fall under different regulatory frameworks.
“The MHRA determines whether a product is a medicine on a case-by-case basis. This includes consideration of a number of factors including the product’s effect on the body, the way it is used and takes into account all the available evidence and relevant legal precedents.
“We disregard claims that products are for ‘research purposes’ if it is clear that such claims are being used as an attempt to avoid medicines regulations. If there is evidence within the promotional material that the products are in fact unauthorised medicines intended for human use, we will take appropriate regulatory action.
“If a product is classified as a medicine and is not appropriately authorised, we take regulatory compliance action, including the removal of the product from the UK market where necessary.
“Not all peptides fall under MHRA’s remit, for example, many peptides are sold for body-building purposes and in the absence of medicinal claims, these would not be considered medicines.”
Claire Reid