The FDA has received reports of cancer in people who used Byetta to treat type-2 diabetes, including thyroid cancer and pancreatic cancer. Although the risk appears to be low, it is difficult to study because many cancers take years to develop.
What You Can Do & How We Can Help
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Byetta induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know was diagnosed with thyroid cancer or pancreatic cancer, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Drug Litigation Group or call us toll-free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
What is the Risk?
There is a very low risk of developing cancer from Byetta. Between 2005 and 2009, doctors wrote more than 7 million prescriptions for Byetta. In roughly the same time frame, there were 375 cases of cancer reported to the FDA in patients on Byetta. About 110 of these cases involved pancreatic cancer or thyroid cancer.
FDA Asks Drug-Makers to Study Cancer Risks
Voluntary reports do not prove that Byetta causes cancer. However, they are a cause for concern. In 2009, the FDA asked drug-makers to conduct six studies to “explore a potential signal of a serious risk of thyroid cancer and pancreatic cancer.”
Study Investigates Pancreatic/Thyroid Cancer Risk
In 2011, Gastroenterology published a study on the risk of cancer from Byetta. Researchers from UCLA analyzed adverse events that were voluntarily submitted to the FDA’s MedWatch system from 2004 until 2009. The researchers found the following risks:
- Pancreatitis: 6-fold increased risk based on 971 case reports
- Pancreatic cancer: 2.9-fold increased risk based on 81 cases
- Thyroid cancer: 4.7-fold increased risk cased on 30 cases
A few weeks after the study was published online, drug-makers sent a letter to the editor of Gastroenterology requesting the retraction of the study. The drug companies were concerned about a potential health scare. The journal agreed to retract the study, but it remains available online.
The lead researcher on the study cautioned:
“This analysis of the FDA database does not establish that pancreatitis, pancreatic cancer and thyroid cancer are caused by GLP-1 therapy. It simply raises the level of concern that they may be, and that the appropriate prospective studies are required to rule them out.”
Do I have a Byetta Lawsuit?
The Schmidt Firm, PLLC is currently accepting Byetta induced injury cases in all 50 states. If you or somebody you know was diagnosed with thyroid cancer or pancreatic cancer, you should contact our lawyers immediately for a free case consultation. Please use the form below to contact our Defective Drug Litigation Group or call us toll-free 24 hours a day at (866) 920-0753.
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