In a 5000-word investigation into Charlotte’s death, The Weekly reports that the popular and beautiful TV presenter was taking a black market drug designed to treat the symptoms of multiple sclerosis.
The drug, Baclofen, has been linked to at least one other high profile suicide, in Britain.
Balcofen is easy to get online, but it has never been approved for the treatment of alcoholism. It is supposed to get the spasms of multiple sclerosis under control.
In pictures: the life of Charlotte Dawson
The drug was last year linked to the suicide of a talented, beautiful, but deeply depressed BBC press officer, Anna Sargent, whose body was found on the banks of the Thames.
A British coroner heard that Anna searched the internet for Balcofen as part of a desperate quest to control her battle with the bottle.
She overdosed of the drug, and was admitted to a psychiatric hospital after suffering hallucinations. She left the clinic, and was later found dead.
Of Anna’s death, the coroner said: “This has been a very unhappy tale – Miss Sargent was a beautiful girl and she clearly loved her family.”
Alcoholics began buying Baclofen either online, or on the black market, after a Parisian heart specialist, Dr Olivier Ameisen, published his book, The End of My Addiction.
Dr Ameisen said that Balcofen helped control his craving for alcohol.
A clinical trial of the drug for the treatment of alcoholism is believed to be underway but Australian doctors generally won’t prescribe it, and it isn’t clear how Charlotte got the drug.
The NSW Coroner is due to receive a brief of evidence on Charlotte’s suicide from the Kings Cross police today.
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