Possible Bladder Cancer from Actos Intake
Also known as pioglitazone, Actos is an oral diabetes medicine that helps control blood sugar level. In 1999, it was okayed for public use and became the most recent member of the thiazolidinedione (TDZ) drug class. As with any other drugs, Actos too has probable side effects and complications. Actos intake is associated with bladder cancer.
Bladder cancer is a type of cancer that begins in your bladder – a balloon-shaped organ in the pelvic area that stores urine. As it is filled with urine, the muscular wall of the bladder stretches and the bladder gets larger. Once the bladder arrives at the maximum amount of urine it can hold, the muscles begin to contract to expel the urine.
When the normal cells start to develop and reproduce in an abnormal pattern, cancer occurs.It begins most often in the cells that line the inside of the bladder. Symptoms of bladder cancer normally include hematuria or blood in the urine, frequent urination, painful urination, urinary tract infections, abdominal pain and back pain. But, the symptoms are not indicative of bladder cancer. They are also found in other disease conditions.
Bladder cancer is almost always idiopathic. There is a link seen between bladder cancer and smoking, parasitic infection, chemical exposure and radiation. Non-modifiable risk factors of bladder cancer include age, seniors are at the highest risk of developing bladder cancer; gender, men are three times more likely than women to have bladder cancer; and race, whites have a much higher risk of developing the condition than other races. Though it is not stated, recent studies have linked the use of oral diabetes medicine with bladder cancer.
The approval for treatment of type II diabetes was given to Actos in July 1999. The June 2011 safety announcement of the US Food and Drug Administration warns the public of the increased bladder cancer risk due to intake of Actos for more than 12 months. The warning was from the FDA’s review of data from planned five-year interval of the current ten-year epidemiological study. The study shows a heightened bladder cancer risk among patients who were exposed to pioglitazone the longest. France also carried out an epidemiological study of the drug, and the same results were collected. France and Germany have suspended the use of pioglitazone and recommended to defer start of pioglitazone regimen on new patients, respectively.
Although data available are still insufficient to fully conclude that Actos increases the risk of bladder cancer, patients and doctors alike are advised to use the drug cautiously. Aside from bladder cancer, the drug is also associated to other Actos side effects. Patients are highly recommended to see a health care provider first before starting on Actos treatment.
References:
drugs.com/actos.html
emedicinehealth.com/bladder_cancer/page2_em.htm
mayoclinic.com/health/bladder-cancer/DS00177/DSECTION=causes
fda.gov/Drugs/DrugSafety/ucm259150.htm
medilexicon.com/drugs/actos.php
