Two grieving mothers whose teenage daughters took their own lives now want to warn others about the common skin treatment Roaccutane (Accutane).
15-year-old Annabel Wright appeared to be a typical teenage girl and had no history of depression. But to the horror and shock of her family, she committed suicide in her bedroom.
Her parents are now convinced that their child was overwhelmed by suicidal feelings caused by the acne drug she had been taking for months.
In an interview with Good Health, Annabel’s mother, 49-year-old Helen Wright said: “I know Annabel didn’t want to leave us. Whatever hit her, hit her like a tidal wave.”
Helen and her husband, 55-year-old Simon, eventually found out that many young people had committed suicide after taking Roaccutane (Accutane in the U.S.).
Roaccutane’s active ingredient is isotretinoin, a substance related to vitamin A and developed by Swiss company Roche in the 1980s.
Roaccutane was initially a treatment for skin cancer but it is also effective when it comes to treating acne. It helped thousands of people with acne since it became available in 1983.
However, isotretinoin has been linked to many serious side-effects, including sexual dysfunctions, birth defects in pregnant women, and suicides in young people.
The death of 15-year-old Annabel and another teenage girl serve as a grave warning that young people are vulnerable to the side-effect of the drug.
Helen now regrets being persuaded by a dermatologist to put her daughter on the acne treatment.
“I’d read that the drug was causing children in the U.S. to take their own lives, but when I raised this with the dermatologist her exact words were, ‘It could be argued that those children took their lives because they were depressed about their skin,” Helen shared.
“And I believed her. But what I know now is that for most kids this drug works and improves their acne, so they’re not attempting suicide when their skin is bad — like Annabel, they are doing it when their skin is already better.”
15-year-old Courtney Morris also committed suicide on May 11 four weeks after being prescribed of Accutane, two times a day.
Her mother, Sisalene, said: “I am still in shock that this happened to my daughter. I believe with my whole heart that this drug took my daughter’s life. This medication should not continue to be prescribed.”
When a dermatologist said she would like to out Courtney on Accutane, Sisalene mentioned her concerns about the drug being linked to depression.
“She told me that when this medication first came out, a young man committed suicide while taking it and the family blamed the drug, so now — to make sure the pharmaceutical companies don’t get sued — they have to list it as a side-effect, just like most medications.”
Sisalene added: “I feel guilty that I allowed her to take it. I should have done more research, asked more questions, but I was being told it was unlikely depression would occur. Now I have to go on living without my child.
“I know I cannot ever get my daughter back. But I hope I can warn others of the possible side-effects.”
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