Have you been affected by Nolotil? Email us: tips@theolivepress.es
THE devastated family of a British tourist who died within hours of being prescribed a ‘lethal’ painkiller in Spain are demanding urgent answers.
Roy St Pierre, 77, was cycling from Portugal to England when a hospital on the Costa Blanca prescribed him the drug Nolotil.
The grandfather-of-ten was given it despite Spanish health authorities being warned against prescribing the medicine to British tourists back in 2018.
What is Nolotil? The painkiller sold in Spain that’s been linked to dozens of British deaths
Concerned about the environment, Roy preferred to cycle where possible. Photo: The Olive Press
Nolotil is being investigated in both Spain and Brussels after being linked to dozens of deaths of northern Europeans – whose genetics are believed to place them more at risk.
Multiple patients have seen their white blood cells plummet after taking the drug, leading to deadly infections, most notably sepsis.
It is this infection that officially killed Londoner Roy within just hours of being prescribed Nolotil at Hospital Universitari Sant Joan, in Alicante.
Roy had moved to Portugal in 2020 and lived with his daughter Amelia St Pierre in Silves, on the Algarve.
However, the ‘lynchpin’ of the family still had seven children back in the UK and decided to travel back to see them by bike.
In particular, he wanted to meet a new granddaughter born to his daughter, Eve St Pierre, at the height of the pandemic.
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Roy with his daughter, Eve (left) and granddaughter (right)Photo: The Olive Press
“He was very moral and eco-conscious, so he decided to cycle across the continent; he had done it twice before,” said Eve.
On March 2, 2023, he set off to Hebden Bridge, Yorkshire, keeping in touch via daily updates on Facebook.
The retired youth worker was soon crossing Spain, where he decided to visit some old friends who had retired in Alicante.
However, on March 25, he began to experience ‘agonising’ back pain, posting: “I was in agony in Almeria until the ibuprofen kicked in.”
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Peace loving Roy had travelled far and wide on his bike since a young age. Photo: The Olive Press
Despite massages and medication, the pain persisted and over a week later, on April 3, he decided to seek help.
After visiting a local health centre in Alicante complaining of stomach pain and vomiting, he was referred to the Hospital Universitari Sant Joan d’Alacant.
He was there diagnosed with ‘nonspecific abdominal pain’, given pain medication and told to return the next day if he was still uncomfortable.
The next morning he set off on his beloved bike to the hospital but fell off and had to be brought in by ambulance.
After an evaluation, it was determined he was suffering from a perforated bowel and would need surgery.
By 12 noon he was administered metamizole, the active ingredient in Nolotil, which is believed to deplete many northern Europeans white blood cells and leave their immunity exposed.
Roy’s family claim that in spite of his ‘compromised immunity’, he was still taken into surgery.
While the operation was successful, Roy never regained consciousness and passed away from sepsis, a widely reported side effect of metamizole, on April 5.
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‘You’ll never have a friend like Roy’, Eve told the Olive Press. Photo: The Olive Press
“We were all reeling with shock,” Eve told the Olive Press, “it was so quick and unexpected.
“We don’t think we can prove definitively that it was Nolotil that killed him, but we know that giving him it didn’t help his odds,” she added.
According to a 2018 informative note issued by the Spanish Medicines Agency (AEMPs), the drug should not be given to ‘floating populations’ that cannot be monitored, such as tourists.
It also should not be given to anyone without a background check, due to the potential risks for certain populations such as Northern Europeans.
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Metamizole, the main active ingredient in Nolotil, is sold under many brand names in Spain. Photo: The Olive Press
Although banned in over 40 countries, the medication is popular in Spain for mid-level pain, as it is stronger than ibuprofen and paracetamol.
German pharmaceutical giant, Boehringer Ingelheim, which makes the drug, told the Olive Press it has a ‘well-established safety profile and has been used by patients for almost 60 years’.
“I would really love to meet a spokesperson at Boehringer, someone who must know there’s a problem with agranulocytosis,” said Eve, a community worker.
“I want them to look me in the eye and say that prescribing that for somebody’s medium level pain, is worth my dad’s death.”
Over a year after his passing, the family still feel like they are ‘free falling’, says Eve.
“He was the ground beneath everybody. There’s no home anymore,” she said.
One of Roy’s grandchildren ‘sleeps with his gloves’ as she misses her beloved grandpa. Photo: The Olive Press
The European Medicines Agency is currently investigating metamizole’s safety profile after the Finnish government raised concerns about the drug.
It comes after years of campaigning by medical translator, Cristina del Campo, and the Olive Press.
You can sign our petition online and find more information at www.adafspain.org.
The Hospital Universitari have failed to comment on the case.
Have you been affected by Nolotil? Email us: tips@theolivepress.es
European Medicines Agency begins review of Nolotil, the painkiller blamed in Spain for dozens of expat deaths
