Health
Coroner recommends TGA review unapproved peptides after actor's death
The Guardian reports that Victorian coroner David Ryan recommended the TGA review unapproved peptides linked to actor Richard Norton's 2025 death.
The short version
- Victorian coroner David Ryan found actor Richard Norton went into cardiac arrest after injecting prescribed, unapproved peptides.[The Guardian]
- Ryan recommended the TGA review the peptides' benefits and safety risks, and consider reclassifying them to schedule 10.[The Guardian]
- A Medical Board of Australia investigation cited an independent expert who found insufficient evidence the peptides are safe or effective; the prescribing doctor was required to take record-keeping training without further regulatory action.[The Guardian]
- The reporting does not say whether the TGA has begun a review or will act on the recommendation.[The Guardian]
Key facts
- Richard Norton, 75, went into cardiac arrest in March 2025 after injecting a prescribed but unapproved peptide.[The Guardian]
- Coroner David Ryan found the cardiac arrest followed Norton's injections of CJC1295 and ipamorelin, which a doctor had prescribed.[The Guardian]
- Ryan recommended the Therapeutic Goods Administration review the therapeutic benefits and safety risks of the peptides.[The Guardian]
- The recommended review should consider moving the peptides from schedule 4 to schedule 10, limiting them to clinical trials or experimental use.[The Guardian]
- Norton died at the Alfred hospital on 30 March 2025, hours after an injection.[The Guardian]
- A Medical Board of Australia investigation cited an independent expert who found insufficient evidence that CJC1295 or ipamorelin is safe, effective or beneficial for human use.[The Guardian]
- The Medical Board deemed regulatory action not warranted but required the prescribing doctor, Dr Jerzy Muchnicki, to complete one-on-one clinical record-keeping training.[The Guardian]
What remains uncertain
- The reporting does not say whether the TGA has started a review or how it will respond to the coroner's recommendation.[The Guardian]
- The expert's finding concerns insufficient evidence of safety and effectiveness; the reporting does not describe it as proof of harm.[The Guardian]
Sources
Outlet counts describe coverage, not independent confirmation. Reports may share a wire service or original source.