DrugRisk Update: Hearing This Month to Decide Location of Byetta Lawsuits
New York, NY (PRWEB) July 08, 2013 -- The diabetes drug resource center at DrugRisk.com is announcing updated information for patients taking the medication Byetta. A federal panel will decide the fate of a growing number of lawsuits alleging pancreatic cancer this month as health experts release new warnings*.
DrugRisk’s mission is to improve patient safety by providing those taking popular prescription drugs with the latest recalls, alerts, research and litigation news. Visitors can see if others are experiencing similar side effects and decide if they need legal advice.
Byetta is a twice-daily injectable medication released in 2005 to help those with type-2 diabetes control blood sugar. Last year the drug had sales of over $300 million for manufacturer Bristol-Myers Squibb**.
The resource center added a 2011 study from UCLA which suggested diabetes drugs like Byetta could increase the risk of pancreatic cancer by 290% and thyroid cancer by 473%***.
This year, the Journal for the American Medical Association also alerted consumers that drugs like Byetta can double the risk of pancreatitis, a major risk factor for pancreatic cancer****.
Now, DrugRisk has learned that the American Diabetes Association is calling for independent studies of medications like Byetta*. A report from the British Medical Journal also suggested such diabetes drugs may be more dangerous than believed, and manufacturers have failed to hand over raw data that would allow further safety testing*****.
Due to the number of patients filing a Byetta lawsuit alleging cancer, the Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation will meet on July 25th to determine consolidation of cases to a special federal court. (In Re: Incretins Products Liability, Sales and Marketing Litigation, MDL 2452, United States Judicial Panel on Multidistrict Litigation).
Anyone affected by cancer after taking Byetta is encouraged to visit the DrugRisk center or speak with a lawyer about their legal options. However, due to the specialized nature of federal drug injury cases, DrugRisk only recommends lawyers who have already handled Byetta lawsuits.
For more information on the research, side effects and litigation news related to Byetta and other drugs, or to speak with a lawyer, visit http://www.DrugRisk.com.
*ADA, 6/10/13; diabetes.org/for-media/2013/american-diabetes-association-incretin-therapy.html
**Bloomberg, 2/25/13; bloomberg.com/news/2013-02-25/merck-bristol-diabetes-drugs-linked-to-pancreatitis-risk.html
***Gastroenterology, July 2011; ctsi.ucla.edu/education/files/publicview/training/docs/FDA-analysis.pdf
****JAMA Internal Medicine, 2/25/13; archinte.jamanetwork.com/article.aspx?articleid=1656537
*****MedPage Today, 6/12/13; medpagetoday.com/Endocrinology/Diabetes/39803
Patient Advocate, DrugRisk, http://www.DrugRisk.com, 888-415-1859, [email protected]
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