Getting malaria pills in Japan

Hi, I'm going on a trip to Vietnam at the end of May, and I want to get some Malarone anti-malarial medication.

However, I've heard that the *only* place I can buy it is from the ''International Clinic'' in Tokyo.

My trip is for 8 dsys, I need to take 1 pill a day during my trip, also for 2 days prior to my trip and a week afterwards, so I need 17 pills.

This clinic is selling them for 1,500 yen a pill - which means it'll cost me a grand total of 25,500 yen.
This seems expensive.

Does anyone know another place where I can buy Malarone pills in Japan for a much cheaper price?
Or can I buy them online somewhere?

thanks!
HP

PS I live in Osaka.

This drug does not seem to be commonly available in Japan; so far I've found only one importer. They charge (I don't know what the dosage of the one you saw was) 12,000 yen for 10 of 250mg/100mg pills anyway.

http://www.irxmedicine.com/products/pdt.asp?p_unitid=36...

The international clinic will most likely have them, but I question if you need anti-malarials for an 8-day trip to the usual areas of Vietnam- most tourists do not take them as the risks are very low.

I was wondering about that too... Some websites recommended it for travellers to India, but not for Vietnam, actually. I've been to Vietnam several times (several days at a time, at different seasons of the year) without taking any medicine, and without any problem.

Malarone are very high-priced in North America as well. The price sounds normal to me... Yes, be sure to check if you absolutely need the pills. Trust me the dosage is very strong and I remember having gastric problems for a month when I went to Ecuador... and this was considered a "mild" secondary effect! If you can avoid it without risking your safety it might be best.

Lizzy