Mounjaro user issues severe warning after it 'destroyed vital organ'
Alisha Trafford, from Hull, began injecting herself with the GLP-1 drug in the hope of losing weight and relieving her PCOS symptoms
By the time Alisa Trafford received her first Mounjaro prescription back in February, she'd tried every other trick in the book when it came to losing weight.
Little did the 25-year-old know that after injecting her belly for the very first time, however, the popular GLP-1 drug would apparently cause serious problems to one of her body's most vital organs.
Recalling her experience, Trafford said that her physique had fluctuated greatly since her teenage years, when she was also diagnosed with polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS).
"I've tried different things to lose weight, but it's never really been as successful as Mounjaro was," the Hull, East Yorkshire local said.
Advert
"Mounjaro was also helping my PCOS symptoms, and it was just making my life better.
"It was probably the best thing I ever did at the time because everything started to change. It was quite nice really seeing everything start to clear up and feeling like you had a magic drug, it was pretty much magical."
Three months after purchasing her initial jab from an online pharmacy for £135, Trafford had already lost a staggering 3.5 stone.
Despite her initial success, by May of this year, the healthcare assistant had suddenly begun experiencing severe levels of abdominal pain, which came hand-in-hand with frequent vomiting.
"I'd been struggling with some abdominal pain for a while, but I didn't really think much of it, I dismissed it," she said. "Then one day the pain got really, really intense. I asked my manager to go home from work, and that's when it all really started to go downhill."
Trafford continued: "Within six hours of me being home I rang for an ambulance, I was vomiting continuously. The pain was getting more intense and it felt quite similar to what I imagine a heart attack would feel like."
After finally being seen by a doctor, she was dealt a brutal blow to her health, being informed that she had pancreatitis - a condition whereby the pancreas becomes severely inflamed over a short period of time.
The bad news wasn't to end there, however.
Following several hospital visits - where she was treated with fluids and painkillers - doctors observed that her health had continued to decline, and she was actually suffering from pancreatic necrosis, which occurs when the tissue of the pancreas dies, potentially leading to sepsis, which can be deadly.
"The only thing they could put it down to was Mounjaro," Trafford continued. "I couldn't lift my head or speak because of how poorly all I was, all I could really do was sleep. The pain was agonising, and my body was exhausted.
"I lost two stone while I was in hospital because I couldn't eat."
By August of this year, she was struggling to speak at all.
"I don't think I realised how poorly I actually was until I went to see the consultant," Trafford went on. "He couldn't actually quite believe I was sitting there and talking. He said he'd never seen so many admissions for pancreatitis so closely together like this, and he was surprised how stable I was.
"He said the only reason I wasn't in a medically induced coma was because of my age; if I'd been any older then it would have been a different story."
On 6 December, Trafford was hospitalised with pancreatitis all over again, where she was told that issues in this area would likely continue for life.
"My life has completely been put on hold," she claimed. "I've been told the pancreatitis is probably going to come back and I'll be at risk of that for the rest of my life now."
Trafford went on to express regret over ever having taken the jab, adding: "I was that person that thought it [being hospitalised] wouldn't happen to me. I have chronic pancreatitis, and my pancreas is still healing, all because I wanted to make better changes and give myself a second chance in life.
"It's heartbreaking because I saw taking Mounjaro as a way my life was going to change for the better."
She continued: "I was pretty much independent, I was healthy, I was getting on with my life, making plans for my future, now I'm just at risk constantly.
"If I knew this was what my life was going to be like then I never would have taken it."
Now, Trafford is warning others to approach weight loss jabs with caution.
"Just be careful. Don't ignore any pain and something doesn't feel right, get it checked," she warned others. "Don't ignore it, it's not worth ignoring if something doesn't feel right, get it seen to."
In response to Trafford's story, Eli Lilly - the manufacturers of Mounjaro - said: "Patient safety is Lilly's top priority. We take reports regarding patient safety seriously and actively monitor, evaluate, and report safety information for all our medicines.
"The Mounjaro (tirzepatide) Patient Information Leaflet warns that inflamed pancreas (acute pancreatitis) is an uncommon side effect (which may affect up to 1 in 100 people).
"It also advises patients to talk to their doctor or other healthcare professional before using Mounjaro if they have ever had pancreatitis.
"We encourage patients to consult their doctor or other healthcare professional regarding any side effects they may be experiencing and to ensure that they are getting genuine Lilly medicine."
LADbible Group has previously contacted Eli Lilly for further comment.
Rhianna Benson