Melanotan IIMelanotan · tanning injection
An unlicensed injectable 'tanning' peptide with documented safety concerns.
Melanotan II is an unlicensed injectable peptide marketed as a tanning agent. It mimics a hormone that stimulates melanocytes, the pigment producing cells in skin, increasing melanin production and darkening the skin with less sun exposure than would otherwise be required.
It is not licensed as a medicine anywhere in the UK or EU, and selling it for human use is illegal here. It is nonetheless widely available online, which is the reason this entry exists rather than any endorsement of the substance.
The documented safety concerns are substantial. Regulators and dermatology case reports describe nausea and vomiting, facial flushing, spontaneous erections, and, most importantly, changes to moles: darkening, enlargement and the appearance of new pigmented lesions.
That mole effect is the specific danger. Melanoma is diagnosed largely by changes in pigmented lesions, so a substance that alters them wholesale makes the most important early warning sign harder to interpret, and cases of melanoma diagnosed in users have been reported.
Because it is unlicensed, there is no quality control over what is actually in a vial, no assurance of sterility, and injecting it carries the infection risks that come with that.
There is a distinct licensed medicine, afamelanotide, used under specialist supervision for a rare photosensitivity disorder. It is not the same product and it is not available for cosmetic tanning.
In practice, this site does not provide dosing or sourcing for it, and the honest summary is that a tan achieved this way is bought with a real and poorly quantified risk. If moles change, see a doctor.