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FDA: Actos Must Warn of Bladder Cancer Risk
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The U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) now requires diabetes drug Actos, generic name pioglitazone, to warn that using it can cause bladder cancer. Unfortunately, the FDA declined to go as far as several European countries that have outright banned
Actos.
On August 4, 2011, the FDA announced drugs containing pioglitazone, such as Actos, will have new labels warning that the use of pioglitazone for more than one year is associated with an increased risk of bladder cancer.
The updated drug labels recommend that healthcare professionals should:
- Not use pioglitazone in patients with active bladder cancer.
- Use pioglitazone with caution in patients with a prior history of bladder cancer.
Further, the label recommends that patients:
- Contact their healthcare professional if they experience any sign of blood in the urine or a red color in the urine or other symptoms such as new or worsening urinary urgency or pain on urination since starting pioglitazone, as these may be due to bladder cancer.
This new warning label falls short of the actions taken by European countries to protect their citizens from developing bladder cancer from
Actos. First
France, then
Germany, banned Actos because of the heightened risk for bladder cancer.
If you are taking Actos, and notice blood in your urine, worsening urges to urinate, or pain while urinating, contact your doctor immediately. These could be signs of bladder cancer. Other drugs containing
Actos include Actoplus Met, Actoplus Met XR and Duetact.
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Posted By DeCarli Law on
August 09, 2011 10:31 am |
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