Urgent: Users of Actos for Type 2 Diabetes Are at Risk for Bladder Cancer
In a frightening announcement updated in August, 2011, the Food and Drug Administration (FDA) issued another warning to millions of Type 2 Diabetes patients that the drug Actos may cause bladder cancer.
Actos is a prescription medication manufactured by Takeda Pharmaceuticals for the purpose of controlling glucose (blood sugar) in adults with Type 2 Diabetes. It is sold under the brand name Actos, as well as Actoplus Met, Duetact, and the generic name, Pioglitazone.
One five-year study involving 193,099 patients showed that people who took Actos for 12 months or longer had a 40% increase in their risk of developing bladder cancer. An adverse event report study later conducted showed that one-fifth of all reports of diagnoses of bladder cancer in diabetes drug users involved Actos.
Other recent studies have linked the use of Actos to heart attacks, strokes, liver failure and other health issues.
A study presented in June at the American Diabetes Association’s (ADA) annual meeting suggested that Actos can also lead to vision loss or blindness. In April 2009, the American Journal of Ophthalmology also posted a “recent study” where nearly 1,000 patients developed Diabetic Macular Edema (DME) after taking Actos.
Even more shocking was a 2003 study that showed results of a retrospective study that also indicated that Actos could result in DME. According to that article, presented at the annual meeting of the American Academy of Ophthalmology, patients in that study had macular edema and also had lower extremity edema or swelling. But, once the Actos was stopped, the lower extremity edema was reversed and the DME was reduced.
Currently, Actos is still being prescribed in the United States, but health regulators in some countries in Europe have suspended sales of the drug pending further study. In 2007, the FDA issued a “black box” warning that included both Actos and Avandia.
In June of 2011, the FDA issued stronger warnings – mentioning the risk of bladder cancer specifically – against use of the drug. However, even with the severity of the warnings, Actos is still being prescribed and taken today.
If you or someone you know has suffered side effects or contracted cancer, heart or liver disease or other personal injury suspected to be a result of the use of ACTOS, please contact Avera & Smith immediately for a free consultation. We will support you with one-on-one personal attention and offer you options for helping get what you deserve in your time of pain and suffering.
