Compare · Melanocortin
Afamelanotide vs PT-141
Both are melanocortin compounds. Here's how they line up on the evidence — graded the same way.
| Afamelanotide | PT-141 | |
|---|---|---|
| Evidence | 9/10 | 10/10 |
| Class | Melanocortin | Melanocortin |
| Summary | Afamelanotide is an FDA- and EMA-approved implant for a rare light-sensitivity disease. The trial evidence is real but modest, and it is not the gray-market tanning drug. | An FDA-approved melanocortin agonist for low sexual desire in premenopausal women. Two real Phase 3 trials show a small, genuine benefit for that one use; almost everything else people take it for is unstudied. |
| Full profile → | Full profile → |
Afamelanotide
Afamelanotide stands out in the "melanotan" family because it is an actual approved medicine, not a gray-market product. Sold under the brand name Scenesse, it is a drug that a doctor implants under the skin to treat a rare inherited disease that makes people extremely sensitive to light. That…
PT-141
PT-141 (bremelanotide) is unusual for this corner of the world: it's an actual FDA-approved drug, sold under the name Vyleesi. But that approval covers only one narrow situation, and most of the reasons people reach for PT-141 fall well outside it. The science behind the approved use is solid and…