Denosumab is a monoclonal antibody that stops bone being broken down. It binds RANK ligand, the signal that tells osteoclasts — the cells that dissolve old bone — to get to work. Blocking that signal tips the balance toward bone being built rather than removed, and it raises bone density and cuts fracture risk substantially. It is given as an injection under the skin: every six months for osteoporosis, under the brand Prolia, or monthly at a higher dose for bone complications of cancer, as Xgeva.
In the NAFDAC register
No matched entry
In our August 2026 copy of the Greenbook (11,000+ products), we have not matched any denosumab product to a register entry. If a seller quotes a NAFDAC number for one, check it on the official Green Book or our NAFDAC checker before paying.
Brands of Denosumab in Nigeria
2 brands available in Nigeria.
Denosumab Price in Nigeria
Denosumab prices in Nigeria vary by brand, strength, and where you buy it. Confirm the current price with a licensed pharmacy, and always check the product is NAFDAC-registered before you pay.
We show a price here once it appears in our monthly sampling of Nigerian online pharmacies (MedPlus, HealthPlus), or when we have a reliable market figure. For now, confirm the current price directly with a licensed pharmacy.
How to Verify Your Denosumab is Genuine
- 1There is nothing to verify. Denosumab holds no NAFDAC registration, so no genuine Nigerian registration number exists for Prolia, Xgeva or any denosumab product.
- 2A denosumab pack printed with a NAFDAC number is showing a number that was invented or cloned — check it against our NAFDAC checker.
- 3Denosumab is a biological medicine that must be kept refrigerated from factory to injection. A pre-filled syringe offered outside a hospital cold chain should be refused whatever its paperwork says: a broken cold chain ruins it invisibly.
- 4If you are receiving denosumab abroad, plan the next dose before travelling. The rebound fracture risk after a delayed dose makes an interrupted course genuinely dangerous.
- 5For osteoporosis being treated in Nigeria, zoledronic acid and teriparatide are registered here, and calcium with vitamin D underpins any treatment. Ask a doctor which applies.
Where to Buy
Denosumab is not registered with NAFDAC, so there is no approved product and no lawful retail supply of it in Nigeria. Ogbogwu does not list sellers for it and does not take requests for it: anyone able to fill such an order would be supplying outside the register, which is the situation this site exists to help people avoid. If it was prescribed to you abroad, carry the prescription and the original pack and check the import rules with NAFDAC. If you were told to take it here, ask your doctor what registered alternative applies — and check any pack you are offered against the register, because a NAFDAC number printed on an unregistered medicine was invented or cloned.
What is Denosumab?
DENOSUMAB IS NOT REGISTERED WITH NAFDAC. Our copy of the NAFDAC Greenbook holds no record of it under any brand or ingredient name, active or lapsed. There is no legal supply in Nigeria.
It is not alone. Alendronate — the cheap weekly tablet that is first-line osteoporosis treatment across most of the world — is also absent from the register, as are risedronate and raloxifene. What Nigeria does have registered are the injectable bisphosphonate zoledronic acid, given once a year, and teriparatide. So osteoporosis is treatable here, but the treatment ladder starts at the rung most countries reach for last.
What is Denosumab used for?
In Nigeria, Denosumab is commonly used for:
- Nothing approved in Nigeria — denosumab holds no NAFDAC registration
- Osteoporosis in postmenopausal women at high fracture risk, where it is licensed abroad
- Osteoporosis in men, and bone loss caused by hormone-blocking cancer treatment, abroad
- Preventing fractures and bone pain where cancer has spread to bone, as Xgeva, abroad
- Giant cell tumour of bone, abroad
Dosage
IMPORTANT
Always follow your doctor's or pharmacist's instructions. The information below is for general reference only.
Adults
No dose is given here for a medicine with no legal supply in Nigeria. Where licensed, Prolia is 60mg injected under the skin once every six months, always alongside adequate calcium and vitamin D.
Children
Denosumab is not used in growing children outside very specific specialist circumstances; it interferes with normal bone growth.
Elderly
Not applicable in Nigeria. Osteoporosis is largely a condition of older people, and denosumab is used in them abroad without routine dose adjustment.
The most important thing to know about denosumab is what happens when it stops. Its effect is not retained: bone loss rebounds rapidly after a missed or delayed dose, and there is a recognised risk of multiple spinal fractures in the months after discontinuation. It must not simply be stopped, and it must not be started somewhere the next dose cannot be guaranteed six months later. For a medicine with no registered supply in Nigeria, that is a serious practical warning — a course begun abroad and interrupted on returning home can leave someone worse off than if it had never been started.
Side Effects
Common side effects
- •Back, muscle and joint pain
- •Pain in the arms or legs
- •Skin rash and eczema
- •Fatigue
- •Constipation or diarrhoea
Serious side effects — seek medical help immediately
- Low blood calcium (hypocalcaemia), which can be severe in kidney impairment or vitamin D deficiency
- Osteonecrosis of the jaw — rare, but more likely at the higher cancer doses and after dental extraction
- Atypical femoral fracture — an unusual thigh-bone break after long use
- Serious skin and soft-tissue infections
- Rebound vertebral fractures after stopping
When to see a doctor
Not applicable to a medicine unavailable here. Anyone receiving denosumab abroad should report numbness or tingling around the mouth, muscle cramps or spasms — signs of low calcium — and any jaw pain, loose tooth or non-healing socket after dental work. Dental treatment should ideally be completed before starting.
Warnings & Precautions
Do not take Denosumab if you have:
- No lawful supply in Nigeria — denosumab holds no NAFDAC registration
- Untreated low blood calcium — this must be corrected before any dose
- Pregnancy
- Known hypersensitivity to denosumab
Drug interactions
- •Other medicines that lower calcium — additive risk of hypocalcaemia
- •Immunosuppressants and corticosteroids such as prednisolone — added infection risk
- •Bisphosphonates such as zoledronic acid — not given together
- •Calcium and vitamin D are given WITH denosumab rather than avoided; deficiency makes it dangerous
Pregnancy & Breastfeeding
Denosumab is contraindicated in pregnancy — it crosses the placenta and can harm fetal bone development. Effective contraception is required during treatment and for five months after the last dose. It is not recommended while breastfeeding.
Related Resources for Denosumab
Guides, articles, and tools related to Denosumab and other bone health medicines in Nigeria.
Frequently Asked Questions
Sources
- •NAFDAC Greenbook — the official database of all products registered with Nigeria's National Agency for Food and Drug Administration and Control. Brand-level NAFDAC numbers for Denosumab on this page were cross-referenced against the Greenbook.
- •British National Formulary (BNF) dosing and interaction guidance for Denosumab.
- •Nigerian Standard Treatment Guidelines (Federal Ministry of Health).
Daily puzzle: Meddle — pair five brands with their medicines. New game at midnight.