In what ways did we influence authorities in different countries when the painkilling substance Propoxyphene (DXP) was banned in US and other countries?

Sweden: In May 11^th 2001 - I published an article in the largest Swedish newspaper Expressen with the headline: “The Medical Product Agency (MPA) offers 200 lives every year” It was one debate article that basically covered a whole page, four columns.  “Every year around 200 persons die due to the painkiller Distalgesic and Paraflex Comp”. 

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In UK: The MHRA in UK (Medicines & Healthcar products Regulatory Agency) in UK gave Professor Keith Hawton, University of Oxford Centre for Suicide Research and his group the task of submitting assist that would be intended as a recommendation for how authorities would act in stopping Dextropoxyphene or not.”

In the European Union. After my dissertation June 20^th 2001 – I took a driving license six months later – and I found out that I kind of have some time over. Then I decided to join the local politics in our hometown Uppsala for the liberal party. I worked in a social council in the municipality. I was very lucky to get two mentors, Erik Ullenhag he was 2002 elected to   Member of the Parliament. Later he became a member of the government for four years. After he left the government when he became ambassador to Jordan http://bit.ly/2ITzIOk

Thanks to Erik Ullenhag we got to know a student friend to him – also a lawyer – Christian Juliusson and was the chief of staff to a member of the EU-parliament in Brüssel -  Marit Paulsen http://bit.ly/2k65lX0  Marit was a well-known Swedish politician. She raised our research about Dextropropoxyphene I the European Parliament “The dangers of DXP (Dextropropoxphene)  http://bit.ly/saZz4y . We visited Brüssel and the Parliament that day she presented the DXP question to the parliament. It was really exciting moment when she entered

In US – together with Public Citizen. Our contacts with Public Citizen - and primary Larry Sasich, Pharm Dr – went very well. I visited Larry twice, and once he followed me when I was going to meet David J Dorsey. Public Citizen had worked in many years to try to stop DXP in USA. Larry Sasich was a well-known researcher in the American Society. He was one of the founders to Public Citizen, the other one was Ralph Nader. http://bit.ly/2IuHmiZ and Sidney M Wolfe http://bit.ly/2IAhkus

Letter one from Public Citizen to FDA about banning Darvon, 2006 (We are co-signers of the letter

http://bit.ly/1j0nnTh February 28, 2006. Sidney M. Wolfe, M.D. Director - Dan Suzman, Research Assoate - Public Citizen’s Health Research Group - Ulf Jonasson, DrPH - Nordic School of Public Health,

Gothenburg, Sweden, Birgitta Jonasson, PhD, Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Uppsala,Sweden

Letter two from Public Citizen to FDA about banning Darvon, 2009 (We are co-signers of the letter

http://bit.ly/1pMLWpq August 6, 2009  - Sidney M. Wolfe, M.D.- Director, Health Research Group at

Public Citizen - Steven Karch M.D., Forensic Toxicologist, Author of Pathology of Drug Abuse – Donald

Kennedy, Ph.D President Emeritus, Stanford University, Former Commissioner, FDA former Editor-in

Chief, Science Magazine - Jerry Avorn, M.D., Professor, Harvard Medical School, Director of Division of Pharmacoepidemiology and Pharmacoeconomics, Department of Medicine, Brigham and Women’s Hospital Ulf Jonasson, Doctor of Public Health, Nordic School of Public Health, Gothenburg, Sweden, Brigitta Jonasson, Ph.D., Department of Forensic Medicine, University of Uppsala, Sweden, D.N. Bateman,M.D. Professor of Clinical Toxicology, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Scotland  

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One day I got a very important mail:

On June 26^th 2009 I got a mail from Gunnar Alvan, he used to be General Director for the MPA in Sweden during the years 1999-2008. He has also been Professor in clinical pharmacology and medical director at Huddinge Hospital. He wrote:

Dear Ulf,

I recently visited a pharmacological congress and meet with a reputed British clinical pharmacology. He was satisfied and fascinated by the fact that dextro disappeared as a result of purposeful opioid formation, but not really aware of your and your wife's central role in this and that you even had it as a thesis hypothesis.

I realized he would write something on the subject and I think it would be nice if he could get your dissertations or other relevant information. His name is Nick Bateman nick. Bateman@luht.scot.nhs.uk     

Postal address is Poisons Information Bureau, Royal Infirmary of Edinburgh, Edinburgh EH 16 4SA.

Regards Gunnar

The two authors - Bateman DN, Sandilands EA - wrote in Journal Clinical Toxicology Volume 47, 2009-Issue 8   

-         There was also an active campaign in Sweden where there was concern about underdetection of associated deaths (6). A decision not to renew a 5-year marketing license extension had been taken in Spring 2004 and in autumn 2005 dextropropoxyphene became unavailable following a campaign that focused on its toxicity in overdose (7). Sweden thus lead Europe on this issue."