My partner is in France and has bought 210 25mcg of Cynomel for approx £18. This makes me very angry for thyroid suffers in the UK. Why is the price so inflated here??
T3 Cynomel France.: My partner is in France and... - Thyroid UK
T3 Cynomel France.
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74 Replies
•
I've no idea. I buy mine for about £40-50 for almost a year's supply. It's shocking.
• in reply topuncturedbicycle
You must be on a low dose surely? I could only dream of paying that yearly!
puncturedbicycle• in reply to
That calculation is based on taking 25mcg daily. Even if you doubled it you'd be paying the same(ish) for a year's supply as you would a month's supply here.
Not good for taxpayers either that NHS is being fleeced so gratuitously 
Hi puncturedbicycle, i'm paying around £16 for 100 x 25mcg, but then of course you get postage and Import Vat slapped on that.
It's shocking what the NHS is being charged. My partner got asked for a prescription though which i'm surprised by, but each pharmacy he went to let him have it.
puncturedbicycle• in reply to
Great, that's about the same as me. How odd that they ask for a script but sell it to you without one - ? I wonder if it's like here where some otc meds are cheaper if you have a script.
• in reply topuncturedbicycle
I know!! As soon as my partner mentioned prescriptions I honestly though we wouldn't get any. It is naughty. Don't say it may be cheaper on a script there, that would be even more shocking!
Clutter, fleeced is a very good word. My GP fell off her chair when I told her what I was paying for Mexican T3, I can't wait to tell what it is in France. It absolutely stinks!!
I asked a work colleague in Lyon to ask about Cynomel pricing in her local pharmacy, but she was told that it could only be supplied on prescription.
I had read in an older post on this forum that Cynomel could be purchased over-the-counter in France.
Has something changed, or was my colleague just in an unhelpful pharmacy?
• in reply toParbrook
I know yoursurname, I read the old post that Cynomel was over the counter, I was really shocked my partner was asked for a prescription. Anyway he bought it at quite a few pharmacies. I was hoping he could get me some b12 injectable too, but the French version has acetic acid which I can't tolerate. It's over the counter there, you have to go into battle in the UK to get these injections.
Parbrook• in reply to
Did your partner have a standard UK GP's prescription, or multiple prescriptions?
• in reply toParbrook
No he didn't have a prescription. He was asked for one, but the various pharmacies gave it to him anyway! Have 300 odd tabs now for peanuts in comparison to UK costs.
Parbrook• in reply to
Very Interesting. Whereabouts in France was this?
• in reply toParbrook
My partner's on training in Paris. So basically where he can walk to. He hasn't had any problems at all obtaining it. You have to go to several pharmacies as you can only get one pack from each one. Worth a day trip do you think? Instead of cigarettes and wine, fill the boot with T3 
Parbrook• in reply to
I work for a French company, and it was my boss that asked in a pharmacy in Lyon for me.
I am going there at the beginning of April, so I will make further enquiries.
At the moment, I am getting my T3 on a GP prescription from Boots (manufactured by Paddock Labs) and I do not expect that my prescription will change until after my first Endo appointment in May (hopefully increase T3, reduce T4).
Hi i was reading this post and wonder could I ask which endocrinologist you are seeing. I ask as I'm taking self prescribed armour, but think I will need t3 also.vi am trying to find out more but think I need assistance. I would be most grateful for a reply.
• in reply tokafe1
Hi Kafe1, I've been self medicating now for the last two years. I saw an endo once 2 years ago who said my symptoms were not my thyroid, then wrote to me with antibodies over 600 and that I was hypothyroid. I just got so sick of useless doctors so I'm now treating myself. I was diagnosed with under active thyroid 4 years ago by my GP.
Sorry I couldn't help.
kafe1• in reply to
Thanks for your reply I wasn't expecting it to be seen...still not sure of my way around the site. I will am thinking of trialling a low dose of t3 on top of armour. I have read there are problems getting the commonly used type. I read your post 're armour. I have found a good pharmacy where they even phone u back. Based near Australia always arrives quickly and avoided taxes. Probably expensive but so far so good. I can email the details of u require.
• in reply tokafe1
Hi Kafe1, I'm actually taking Westhroid and T3, through trial and error it's the only combination that works for me. This time I'm also taking hydrocortisone, and for the first time in 10 years I'm getting some normal temperatures. I know my cortisol is desperately low as I've taken 2 adrenal stress profile tests.
Are you getting armour with a prescription? Don't put the name of the pharmacy on this post or you'll get jumped on! You could send me a private message about it. Are you in the UK?
kafe1• in reply to
Hi there helcaster. I'm in the UK and getting armour from an online pharmacy without a prescription. I have an endocrinologist who is sympathetic and willing to monitor me but not prescribe ! Not much good I'm now thinkin long term as I'd like to get it on prescription.... so I am looking at the recommended doctors list to see if that could help me plus also figure out what else I need. The endocrinologist did put me on fludrocortisone 18 months ago it saved my life but then following stress I got sick again...
Ive been ill 16 years too many with so called m.e. and now trying to get treated, properly! I'm happy with my supplier for armour so I can email you as i'm not sure how to pm .... Best wishes x
• in reply tokafe1
Hi Kafe1, I thought I knew all the online pharmacies by now lol! I'm so glad you're managing to get some armour!
Like you I was diagnosed with ME in 1998, so many opportunities missed to get diagnosed hypo. When I finally saw Dr Skinner in 2011 he said I'd been hypo for at least 20 years possibly a lot more back to the birth of my first baby which was a traumatic high forceps delivery, my daughter is 37 now.
It's amazing you found an endo to put you on something for your adrenals. I do think if you are treating them it can sometimes take years. When I started hydrocortisone nothing happened and I went up to 30 mg, then 3 months down the line I think my thyroid meds suddenly started working for the first time, because I got so sweaty and my temperatures were over 37 deg, so I cut down to 20mg and that seems to suit me. Very worrying though that I started to do some filing yesterday and just a few letters in I started to shake uncontrollably, and couldn't remember the order of the months in a year. I thought hydrocortisone would fix all that.
If you click on Helcaster above, it should give you the option of sending a message.
Hugs X
• in reply toParbrook
Hi are you still getting your t3 on prescription from Paddock labs from Boots?
You got in one reallyfedup123 !
I agree, no need for such a difference.
• in reply to
Cinnamon, we get ripped off for a lot of things in the UK. Do you think my MP would do anything? Who should I go to with this info? Anybody know?
• in reply to
Helcaster - I know this is a different subject but I've been dealing with the DWP re my late mother's finances. Their treatment is disgraceful - they ignore my replies and paperwork, they are rude in their correspondence and I've now sent a formal complaint as I can't take any more of their cr&p. Contacted the local MP who wanted some scanned copies and sent those in the morning. By the afternoon I received an e-mail to say that he'd been in contact with them. He's a Tory but I've had to ignore that!
I've been very surprised considering it was the millionaire Ian Duncan-Smith that introduced this benefit recovery bill although sounds as though he's received a few moans about this.
You've nothing to lose, go for it and good luck!
• in reply to
I know what you're saying, i'm on DLA and i've had many run ins with them! What a fantastic response! A MP actually doing something. They all live in a bubble these politicians, they have absolutely no idea of what's happening on the ground.
I'm very impressed with you, good result!
• in reply to
Agree with you there Helcaster, politicians are well protected but fail to understand why the turnout is so low at Election time.
Another avenue possibly is Healthwatch, they claim that they're independent.
Good luck and do keep us posted!
• in reply to
They don't represent us that's why cinnamon_girl, too busy feathering their nests and going off on Jolie's!
Thanks for that info, I will look into them.
Will do
The NHS has grown into a £ sucking monster. I go to a lot of hospitals, the corridor walkers trying the look busy and patients getting ignored when nurses are giggling on the nurses station. I know there are good nurses around, I just haven't been on the receiving end very often. Standards are just not improving despite all the money pumped in. Yes you're right about useless managers on ridiculou salaries.
There must be a body looking at the prices of drugs?? Billions going down the drain for the NHS. I can feel a letter to the Prime Minister coming on.
HarryE• in reply to
I have worked for the NHS for 5 years and it horrifies me. The waste and lack of drive for value for money is criminal. It has been my biggest issue since I joined. And now of course, I am ill and off sick and I can't get treatment!!! Madness.
• in reply toHarryE
Hi HarryE, i've been an in patient many times over the years, and it's nothing short of shameful. Out of my 6 regulars I could only say one was satisfactory. I'm disabled through neglect.i told nurses I had cystitis post surgery and none of them bothered to send a urine sample to the lab. It wasn't until I was an emergency admission with a haemorridge this infection got treated, sadly too late for my bladder.
It sickens me we aren't getting the treatment we all need. Have noticed in recent years a lack of willingness to refer to consultants, and if you're an out patient and can't be helped by surgery you get discharged. A doctor at an orthopaedic hospital told me that. I think the writing is on the wall for the NHS.
HarryE• in reply to
What drives me mad is that people just shrug, as if nothing can be changed. It CAN be changed if enough of us bother!! But I can't do it on my own, especially not while off sick!
• in reply to
I agree. Unfortunately I've spent far too much time in hospitals with elderly parents. My late mother spent 4 weeks in hospital, I visited 4 times a week spending a few hours each time with her. Did I see one nurse pop into the ward and spend a few minutes chatting with the elderly patients? No, never.
• in reply to
Too busy on their facebooks on the nurses station, i've seen it with my own eyes. An ex friend who is a midwife was always chatting on Facebook to update everyone how it was going at work!
Perhaps an organisation like 38 Degrees can get behind this? I'm fairly sure they consider suggestions for campaigns.
shawsAdministrator
There is only one source in the UK and, like you, you wonder why? The authorities obviously do not source cheaper alternatives or they are classified 'unlicenced'. I told my GP that 'it's a rip-off'.
Does France require a prescription or can it be bought off the shelf, so that there will be day-trippers popping off for a nice day trip and stocking up.
I wouldn't be surprised if that's what some Americans do - take a little day trip to Mexico or Canada to stock up. I know it happens with other drugs.
• in reply topuncturedbicycle
I know! I get my T3 from Mexico, Armour I think from a Pacific Island and the LDN I bought in the end came from India. I don't like doing this one bit, it's not just about costs, it's risks you are forced to take. What do we do if these online pharmacies are shut down, or need a prescription? My GP is aware of what i'm doing, I bet the practice is rubbing it's hands together with what has been saved for them!
puncturedbicycle• in reply to
What I most dislike is that ordering from abroad on the internet makes you look like a bit of a nutter when all you're doing is informing yourself so you can escape a repressive regime and regain your health.
In all my days I never thought I'd be ordering drugs online like a crazy person. Have always been compliant and just taken what I was prescribed.
• in reply topuncturedbicycle
Hi Punctured bicycle, I know what you mean, it does feel very naughty! But @##£+% to it, I want to get well. We've been forced into this situation by the NHS.
I live in a small village of 200'ish people, and my postman said there are other people ordering drugs too, not just thyroid medication. It stinks!
Hi Taffmaster, that's a really great idea, I will contact them!
Hi Shaws, a previous post said Cynomel was available over the counter but my partner was asked for a prescription. He still got the Cynomel though!
Why the NHS doesn't source other T3's and give Mercury the finger I will never know. I do intend to create the biggest stink possible with this though. What I need to know is exactly what Liothyronine costs in this country. Maybe Rod will know? I just want to get the comparison correct.
nobodysdriving• in reply to
Hi there, it is because it is not down to the NHS.....
it is a pharmaceutical company who has to apply to MHRA for a 'license' to go on the BNF. So a pharmaceutical company manager/rep has to initiate the process, they are likely to need to spend a lot of money too in order to get a license and keep it up to date.
The company will have to see if the investment (the charges and the time taken and resources used in the process) are worth what they will get out of it (ie, will they sell enough to not only get their money back but have a profit on top too???) that is probably why mercury pharma/amdipharm T3 is so expensive to begin with!!!
the answer? we need a lot more people being prescribed T3 so that the pharmaceutical companies see it worthwhile to apply for a license, and/or for the licencing process to be easier/cheaper for them?
• in reply tonobodysdriving
Trouble is NBD prescriptions for T3 are on a downward spiral. I get what you're saying but haven't amdipharm rather shot themselves in the foot?
And why is it so cheap in other countries, surely the drug companies have to go through a similar process?
We are allowed "unlicensed" drugs if they are necessary for us to regain our health, why can't we get T3 cheaper from abroad on our prescriptions?
nobodysdriving• in reply to
I don't know what the drug licensing situation/process is abroad obviously and I am far too busy in my life to go and find out LOL
Amdipharm have not shot themselves in the foot but are rather clever, they hold the 'monopoly' to the T3 market in UK LOL
we are allowed unlicensed drugs of course, problem is most GPs are far too 'wimpy' to prescribe a different brand of T3 as they are constantly 'scared' of being told off by someone one day!
I am just trying to say it is NOT the NHS controlling this, it is not down to them to find a cheaper T3, in fact it's probably easier for them to tell us we don't need it LOOOOL
Do you know who the manufacturer is?
• in reply todwsmith
My partner's in France until Thursday. I look on the packaging and let you know.
T
he last Liothyronine script i paid for from LLyods cost me £450 at a dose of 60mcg daily. Absolutely disgusting! I was completely unaware i could buy it abroad. I had to come off it after that because the next quote i had 3 months later was £750 no word of a lie!! What is going on ?
• in reply todwsmith
That is despicable dwsmith. I pay about £16 for 100 25mcg tabs from a Mexican pharmacy. But then you add on postage and import vat is 20% of the value of the goods, but still a hell of a lot cheaper.
Do you mind me quoting those figures in correspondence?
gillykins2• in reply to
Helcaster, thank you for mentioning the import VAT. I've been trying to find out how much that would be if I ordered from the Mexico. Could you pm(?) me with details of the pharmacy you use. I'm apprehensive about ordering online, but my GP won't supply T3 anymore. Many thanks
Go ahead they are absolutely true, i could give the name of the pharmacy if you need it, the Guy at the pharmacy was so helpful, i phoned him several times for advice, but he couldn't do anything about the price. Yes, i am about to order from Mexico!! Just wondered if the Cynomel in France is same manu as the one from Mexico,
• in reply todwsmith
Thanks so much! We're being priced out of improving our health!
I'm wondering that too dwsmith, going to try it on Friday, hopefully the ingredients will be the same.
We'll be selling the stuff on the street soon to fund a BMW lol!
no, the french Cynomel is made by Sanofi-Aventis, the one from Mexico is made by 'Grossman' (a mexican pharmaceutical company, it is IMPOSSIBLE to import it here in UK via pharmaceutical importers, even on a named patient basis you cannot get the mexican one, but you CAN with the french one)
I know, the difference is phenomenal!! an outrage! Yes, hope the quality is as good, I'm a bit worried but it seems everybody gets theirs from there x
• in reply todwsmith
I have nothing to compare the quality with dwsmith. You only get 25mcg tabs. The pharmacy was recommended by a friend on this site, i've been ordering for nearly a year now with no problems.
I certainly know when I need my next dose, and i'm losing weight, that's good enough for me. I put weight on with Levo, i'm a pound under losing 2 stones in 15 months now. I have cut out 90% of sugar though. If anything i'm eating more fat. I was on a low fat diet all my adult life, I still have skimmed milk in my red bush tea, but have semi for everything else. I've swapped margerine for butter too! Whatever i'm doing it's working!
susie59• in reply to
I was told the cynomel from mexico was a good strength? maybe a bit stronger than NHS, but I am glad I can get it from there, would be awful otherwise, and pleased it's affordable.
Hi susie59, aren't the tablets slightly bigger? Is liothyronine 20mcg?
I feel so relieved that I have a reliable source. I upped it by half a tab every 2 to 3 weeks. I'm happily taking 100mcg one day and 75mcg the next.
The first time I took a whole T3 tab I felt my legs go from under me I never thought I'd settle on it, but I didn't give up and now it's fine.
mickstability• in reply to
Yes, when you first start T3 you can feel the surge soon after taking it, but as you say, it settles and becomes less dramatic. It's not of course a direct comparison, but I'd liken it to becoming tolerant to regular drinking of say, whisky - a couple of stiff ones would knock a debutant over, where a regular imbiber would take it in their stride. I imagine.
You can buy over counter in spain I did so only a few weeks ago ..
Hi lola1956 where about in Spain did you buy this? My doctor here has told me it is not available in Spain and that I would need to have a letter from a British registered Doctor to enable him to request it be imported into Spain 
Any help would be gratefully received
I got the wrong thing it was not t3 sorry I did explain in a later post ..I know you can buy in greece ..sorry for getting your hopes up
• in reply toKiminSpain
Hi kiminSpain, it's a mystery but yours and Lola1956's messages have been appearing in my Inbox, weird!
Hi Helcaster, thats strange i only drink red bush tea too, and I've gone back to full fat butter, i can't say iv cut all my sugar out though - that will be tough for me. But lets hope i start losing weight too that would be a great bonus!!
I know that there is T3 in caviar, perhaps the NHS produce theirs from Beluga caviar, where as France produce theirs from. . . . errrrr . . . Snails eggs or frog spawn maybe ? 
Hi, we are thinking of relocating to France and I wondered what the thyroid treatment is like there?
It's good news that you can get T3 which is what I'm prescribed in the UK. Does your partner get it on prescription in France? Being hypothyroid makes me nervous about the move...
• in reply toBreeny
Hi Breeny, my partner was on training in Paris, we live in the UK. He went to many pharmacies, he was asked for a prescription and because he didn't have one was only allowed one box of T3 per pharmacy.
I can imagine why you're nervous, but I can't believe they'd be any worse than here re your treatment
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