Is R3 a medication? Pharmacy, prescription, tablet: the answers
“R3 medication,” “R3 in pharmacies,” “R3 by prescription”… R3, the nickname for retatrutide, is generating a lot of buzz on social media, and many believe it’s already a available treatment. Here’s the real story, with dates and sources.
- Not an authorized drug: no marketing authorization, neither in France, nor in Europe, nor in the United States.
- Phase 3 complete: Eli Lilly plans to submit its application to the FDA in the first quarter of 2027; no application announced in Europe.
- Not available in pharmacies, no prescription outside of clinical trials.
- No tablet: retatrutide is only available in injectable form.
Is R3 a medicine?
Not yet. R3 is retatrutide (code LY3437943), developed by the American pharmaceutical company Eli Lilly. It acts on three hormone receptors: GLP-1, GIP, and glucagon, hence its nickname ( what is R3?). To become a drug, it must obtain marketing authorization (MA), which is not the case anywhere to date.
| Date | Stage |
|---|---|
| 2023 | Phase 2 trial published in the New England Journal of Medicine: up to −24.2% average weight loss at 48 weeks. |
| May 21, 2026 | Lilly announces the main results of the phase 3 TRIUMPH-1 (obesity) trial. |
| July 23, 2026 | TRIUMPH-2 and TRIUMPH-3 results; Lilly indicates that its dossier is complete and plans to submit it to the FDA in the first quarter of 2027. |
| October 24, 2026 | No marketing authorization, no application announced to the European Medicines Agency (EMA). |
In Europe, authorization would go through the EMA, whose review generally takes a year or more, followed by national pricing and reimbursement stages. Details of the legal status country by country, including relevant legislation and competent authorities, can be found on our page.retatrutide: legal status in Europe.
Is R3 available in pharmacies?
No. Without a marketing authorization, no French pharmacy can sell retatrutide, neither with a prescription nor without. If you hear about "R3 in pharmacies," it's almost always a confusion with drugs in the same family that are authorized and dispensed with a prescription: semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro).
Is R3 available by prescription?
No, not with a regular prescription. A doctor cannot prescribe a drug that does not have marketing authorization. The only regulated access routes are clinical trials conducted by Eli Lilly and, where applicable, an expanded access program managed by the company with physicians (such a program for retatrutide is registered on ClinicalTrials.gov under reference NCT07629401).
Is R3 available in tablet form?
No. Retatrutide is a peptide: in clinical trials, it is administered by injection once a week. A product marketed as "R3 tablets" or "R3 capsules" is not retatrutide. The confusion often stems from orforglipron, the highly publicized Eli Lilly tablet: it is a different molecule, which acts only on the GLP-1 receptor. Bottles and pens sold online: these are the forms of R3.
R3, Ozempic, Wegovy, Mounjaro: what are the differences?
| Molecule (names) | Receptors | Status in Europe | Where to find it |
|---|---|---|---|
| Semaglutide(Ozempic, Wegovy) | GLP-1 | Authorized drug | Pharmacy, prescription required |
| Tirzepatide(Mounjaro) | GLP-1 + GIP | Authorized drug | Pharmacy, prescription required |
| Retatrutide(R3, Reta,GLP-3) | GLP-1 + GIP + glucagon | Not authorized (phase 3 completed) | Clinical trials; elsewhere, only as a research peptide |
So, what exactly is being sold under the name R3?
What is circulating online under the name R3 is research-grade retatrutide: a lyophilized powder in a vial (10, 20 mg…), synthesized by peptide chemistry laboratories and sold as a reagent, not as a drug. In France, the ANSM (French National Agency for Medicines and Health Products Safety) published an alert on July 2, 2026, regarding “peptides” sold online, which specifically mentions retatrutide (see our page on its legal status).
From one seller to another, the purity and actual quantity vary considerably: only an independent, batch-specific certificate of analysis can determine the contents of the vial. Our guide: how to choose a retatrutide supplier and the price of R3 in France. At MyPeptide, Retatrutide R3 10 mg is sold as a research peptide, with a verifiable Janoshik report for each batch.
MyPeptide offers retatrutide as a research peptide:€59.90 per 10 mg vial, €99.90 per 20 mg vial(less than €5 per milligram), delivery €10. Each batch is blind-tested by Janoshik (purity and quantity measured), report verifiable with its key. Shipped from the European Union.
Retatrutide R3 10 mg – €59.90Retatrutide R3 20 mg – €99.90
Frequently Asked Questions
Is R3 a medicine?
Not yet. R3 is retatrutide, a molecule from Eli Lilly that is still under evaluation: Lilly plans to submit its application to the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) in the first quarter of 2027, and no application has been announced to the European Medicines Agency. Therefore, it has no marketing authorization in France or Europe.
Can R3 be purchased in pharmacies?
No. Without marketing authorization, no French pharmacy can sell retatrutide. Medications in the same class sold in pharmacies, by prescription only, are other molecules: semaglutide (Ozempic, Wegovy) and tirzepatide (Mounjaro).
Can a doctor prescribe R3?
No, not outside of a clinical trial or an access program supervised by the laboratory: without marketing authorization, retatrutide cannot be prescribed in a regular manner.
Is R3 available in tablet form?
No. Retatrutide is only available in injectable form in clinical trials. The Eli Lilly tablet that's getting a lot of attention, orforglipron, is a different molecule, which only acts on the GLP-1 receptor.
Is the R3 reimbursed by Social Security?
No. A molecule without marketing authorization has neither an official price nor reimbursement. These issues will only arise after potential European authorization.
When will R3 be available in pharmacies?
No date exists. Eli Lilly would first have to submit an application to the European Medicines Agency, which would then have to examine it, which generally takes a year or more, before the national pricing and reimbursement stages.
Sources: Eli Lilly press releases and quarterly report (July 2026); Jastreboff A.M. et al., N Engl J Med 2023; ClinicalTrials.gov (NCT07629401); ANSM (alert of July 2, 2026). MyPeptide products are intended exclusively for scientific research in laboratories.